


From Fraud to Father

by TonyStarkissist



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: F/M, Foster Care, Gen, Kid Fic, Kid Peter Parker, Lots and lots of hugs and snuggles, Orphan Annie AU, Orphan Peter Parker, Parent Tony Stark, Pepper Potts Is a Good Bro, Pepperony - Freeform, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Precious Peter Parker, Sassy Peter, Tony Has It Soft For Cats, Tony Stark Does What He Wants, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Is a Good Bro, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Tony Stark is Good With Kids, Tony Stark likes kids but doesn't want to admit it out loud, Uncle Rhodey!!, but only sometimes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-21
Updated: 2019-05-24
Packaged: 2019-11-26 17:45:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 67,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18183752
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TonyStarkissist/pseuds/TonyStarkissist
Summary: “Tony,” she placated, “all you have to do is read a couple children's books to them and answer a few of their questions. You’ll be fine.”“Will you come with me? You’re so good with kids,” he pleaded as she finished up with his collar and awkwardly patted the lapels of his suit down, forcing a smile onto her face when she looked up at him.“No. I’ve got a lot of work to do. Phil’s going with you, though, and so is Happy. You shouldn’t have a problem. They'll make sure you don't do anything stupid.”Theres a long pause before Tony finally voices his true concern.“But what if one of them sneezes on me?"





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So, um, yeah, here you go. Here's the Orphan Annie AU that one person wanted (hint: me)
> 
> This takes place after Iron Man 2, and just ignore the last scene where Senator Stern (??? was that his name?) gave Tony and Rhodey those medals. Yeah, just ignore that  
> Hope it's good, and I hope you like it. Thanks for reading.

Hammer was an idiot.

Tony didn’t think it was possible, but he’s quite sure he hates the man infinitely more so as he watched with wide eyes and a gaping mouth as his company’s stock literally plummeted into the grounds of the Earth and out the other side. It was worse than when he came back from Afghanistan a year ago and made the decision to confess to the press his new intentions for his company. This… this was so, so much worse. Apparently, it didn’t matter that he had saved the city… nope, apparently not important, because here he was, being screwed over for doing the right thing.

There were an infinite number of articles trending on the main pages of Google, Bing, Facebook, and whatever other sites people mindlessly use to waste time from their day so they can hide away from the real-world issues taking place in their lives. There were many who had somehow obtained the information that Tony had been suffering from palladium poisoning, which, yeah, he had been at the time, but not anymore. Half the articles were practically predicting his death to occur in the next month. It most definitely didn’t help when people started putting the pieces together, such as the fact that he had practically forked over everything of importance to other people before his timely death. He wasn’t dying anymore though! And Pepper was good at running his company, Rhodey was making an enormous difference with War Machine, and those boy scouts were really making good use of his little donation.

It was all going great… until he got a call from one of the board members telling him to take a look at the SI stock records.

And apparently it most definitely didn’t help that he hadn’t made a public appearance since that small incident that had occurred at the Stark Expo. Which, by the way, led to millions of dollars in preparation being lost, because they had to cancel the whole freaking tour! Something about public safety or whatever. People were just so dramatic about every little thing nowadays… _so sensitive._

He didn’t care! All he knew was that he was pissed.

“Tony,” Pepper begged, looking up at him with a tired glaze over her eyes as she massaged her hairline. She probably hadn’t slept in days with the way she stressed about everything, “please stop glaring at the screen. It’s not going to help. We need to come up with a good plan to raise your public image so people don’t think you’re a dying, selfish asshole with a drinking problem. Which means no ‘accidental’ wardrobe malfunctions, threats, lawsuits, violence, flashing the cameras, ‘accidents’, drunken rages, drunken twitter posts, or _anything_ that you could have possibly gotten away with before all of this went down. Do you understand?”

Tony understood alright. That didn’t mean he had to like it.

“I don’t understand why these idiots have to make such a big deal out of everything,” he muttered to himself, ignoring Pepper’s advice and continuing to glare at the screen. “Get PR down here. They probably have some ludicrous idea of how we can fix this.”

***

If Peter could turn back time, he would have never begged Uncle Ben and Aunt May to bring him to the Stark Expo… if he hadn’t then maybe that stupid Hammer Drone wouldn’t have killed them. It was stupid! It was all dumb and stupid! Because all he got out of it, was a dumb little glove gauntlet, iron man helmet, a dumb shirt, a pat on the head by Tony Stark, and an up-close view of the Iron Man suit. He’d give it all up in a heartbeat if that meant he’d get to see his Aunt and Uncle again. He just wanted them back, that’s all he wanted.

It kinda sucked when you already knew that the one thing you actually wanted was impossible to actually get.

He sulked quietly in his new, raggedy bed, glancing over to spot an older boy in the bed across from him with his reading lamp on while he read through a new comic book he had found in the trash on the way home from school. He didn’t like his new bed, and he didn’t like his new guardian, and he most definitely didn’t like the new school he’d been placed in, or the classmates and teacher that came along with it.

He’d been moved into a crappy neighborhood, and because of a lack of funds for a poor, dumb, little orphan, there was no other choice but to go to the zoned ghetto school two blocks down from the house he was living in. He didn’t have any friends there, and no matter how hard he worked, he’d never be able to build his way up to go to the high school he’d been dreaming of going to since he was little: Midtown Tech.

It all sucked.

He hated it, but he only had 11 years before he was 18… at least that was something he could look forward to. He just had to stop thinking about all the bad things… then maybe he wouldn’t have to be so sad about it.

***

“Please Pepper,” Tony begged her as she tightened the tie around his neck. “Please don’t make me go to that weird school. I bet you those kids don’t do anything but pick their noses and pee their pants. Please.”

He didn’t like the way Pepper seemed to be amused by his obvious pain. She may be CEO now, but that didn’t mean she was allowed to belittle his feelings the way she was, especially after their very awkward fallout after that spur of the moment kiss on the roof. According to all those ridiculous romance dramas, they should be walking on eggshells around each other. He’d much prefer it that way because that would mean it actually meant something to her… he hated not knowing.

“Tony,” she placated, “all you have to do is read a couple children's books to them and answer a few of their questions. You’ll be fine.”

“Will you come with me? You’re so good with kids,” he pleaded as she finished up with his collar and awkwardly patted the lapels of his suit down, forcing a smile onto her face when she looked up at him.

“No. I’ve got a lot of work to do. Phil’s going with you though, and so is Happy. You shouldn’t have a problem. They'll make sure you don't do anything stupid.”

“But what if one of them sneezes on me?”

Pepper just looks at him, with that arch in her brow raised in a way that signified annoyance… he got that look a lot.

***

One of the children _did_ sneeze on him. He'd just like to make that clear. In fact, that was practically the first thing that happened when he stepped into the sketchy looking classroom where a room full of young minds and press cameras were eagerly waiting for him. He was very proud that he didn't hightail it out of that room as soon as it had happened.

He tried his very best not to look too uncomfortable, even though he felt extremely so. He didn’t even have to say anything before the teacher was clapping her hands to garner the classes attention. This drew the students’ focus away from him for just a moment so they could scurry over to the old, stained carpet in the middle of the room, facing a, by the looks of it, germ-infested bean bag chair where he guessed he was supposed to sit. He held back the grimace as he glanced around the gnarly classroom, and simply focused on the _one_ clean spot on the wall across the room.

He was sure to make a big show of smiling for the cameras as he walked past the groups of desks towards the big bean bag chair. Phil rushed to his side to hand him two colorful books when he sat down, and Tony frowned in annoyance when he looked down at the cheesy titles. ‘Amelia Bedelia’? What the heck? He’d heard of the other one: ‘The Giving Tree’, but the other one just sounded ridiculous. So, with a quick greeting to the children he discarded the weird book and started on the familiar bright green book by opening up to the first page.

Pepper had given him clear instructions on how to read to the children before he left. First, he was supposed to read the words on the page. Then, he was supposed to turn the book around and show the kid’s the picture on the page before moving on, because apparently their tiny minds couldn’t be stimulated without pictures.

He definitely did not happen to miss the, probably, five kids with their fingers so far up his nose it should have hurt. He tried so hard not to focus on it, and he most definitely didn’t look that little girl dead in the eye while she stuck her finger straight in her mouth after passionately digging in her nose. He didn’t gag; he swears by it. But Happy and Phil would both probably disagree. So, after that incident, he tried his best to avoid eye contact with any of the other gold-diggers… just in case.

He was almost done with the first book, and he was getting a bit antsy; ready to leave and escape the horrendous hellhole he'd been sucked into. Then, there was a little knock at the door, and the teacher jumped from her seat and rushed over to answer it. Tony paused in his reading and craned his neck curiously to try and get a look at the new visitor. Maybe it was Pepper coming to rescue him.

It wasn't. On the other side of the door stood a timid looking little boy. His gaze was cast down to his worn and scruffy sneakers as the teacher quietly reprimanded him, probably for being tardy for class.

When the little boy looked up to meet Tony’s gaze, his tiny brown eyes widened comically, and his small mouth fell open before splitting into a large, excited grin. He was missing his two front teeth and for some reason Tony found it absurdly endearing.

The poor kid must have been shy, because after maybe two seconds, he seemed to realize he was staring, and his mouth quickly clamped together in a tight frown and he averted his eyes back to his shoes while the teacher ushered him into the room.

“C’mon kid. You’re just in time for the depressing ending,” Tony smiled, waving the timid boy over. He scurried over quickly, shooting various wary glances around at the crowd of students and cameras staring at him before taking a seat on the carpet at the very back of the group.

Tony continued reading, and he couldn’t help but notice that the late kid wasn’t a designated gold-digger. Or, he at least had the common decency to not do it in public.

Then, it was time for questions, and for some reason he dreaded that part more than the actual reading. He prepared himself for many, many questions about Iron Man and his money, because those were really the only things about himself that seemed to interest children… and most adults.

His assumption turned out to be correct. There were a few science based questions thrown in there, but they were the mundane, child-like questions that seemed to intrigue all young children for some odd reason. ‘Why is the sky blue?’ ‘Are aliens real?’ ‘How do airplanes stay in the air?’ All of which he knew the answer too… however, he wasn’t all too familiar with explaining them to a group of small children with the mental capacity of a well-trained Chimpanzee. I mean, they were picking their noses for god's sake! So, he stuck with the very basics, hoping that they were somewhat able to comprehend it, and if not… oh well. Sucks to suck.

He couldn’t help but notice that, unlike all the other eager children around him with their hands raised so emphatically that he’d probably strain his shoulder if he put as much effort into it, the shy, curly headed boy in the back didn’t raise his hand. He seemed to be perfectly content with playing with his shoelaces instead, perhaps looking up once in a while when Tony said something he found particularly interesting.

Tony squinted slightly, trying to see through the sea of small hands, to get a better look at him. He’d never met a quiet, unobnoxious child before, and he was kinda intrigued.

“Hey, quiet kid in the back,” Tony spoke, looking straight at the boy. Somehow the kid seemed to know he was talking about him and his neck practically snapped in half with how quickly his head jumped up, and he stared at Tony with wide, worry stricken eyes. As if he were scared he’d done something wrong. Tony stored that particular observation at the back of his mind and continued on with what he was planning to ask him. “You got any questions? You seem kinda quiet back there.”

He didn’t know why he seemed to like this tiny, shy, little kid, with a weirdly shaped dirt smudge on his cheek, more than he liked the others. There was just a look in his eyes that seemed to charm him. He seemed… more mature than any 7-year-old should be.

The small boy stammered quietly and a few of his classmates lowered their hands and turned their gazes to glare at him. It didn’t take Tony awfully long to realize why he had taken to hiding at the back of the group.

“I-I-I do have _one_ ,” the kid was able to choke out eventually. His voice was high-pitched and scared, and he dropped his gaze away from Tony, back down to his shoes while he spoke.

Tony couldn’t help but smile at his charming awkwardness. He could hear the shuttering of the cameras going off in the background as he waited patiently for the kid to ask his question, but he paid them no mind.

“You-um. You discovered a new element to replace the palladium in your suit power…,” his face scrunched up as he thought for the right word, “core. How-how did you do that?”

The question surprised Tony, and his eyes widened a bit from the surprise, he definitely wasn’t expecting that to come out of the kid’s mouth and he couldn’t have been happier. But before he could answer the beautiful question, the nasty little girl who ate her own boogers was rolling her eyes at Peter as if he were the dumbest person she’d ever met in her tiny, insignificant little life. Tony _really_ didn't like her.

“Ugh, Peter, stop being such a nerd,” she taunted, “Nobody likes a show off.”

“I-I’m sorry,” the boy, Peter, stuttered, looking shamefully into his lap, and squeezing his eyelids together tightly. Tony didn’t like that. Nobody should be ridiculed for asking a question. Such a great one at that.

He frowned and made quick work to praise the kid before he took to beating himself up too much. “Hey-hey-hey it's alright. It's a good question.”

The kid's face lit up at the praise he was offered, and the corner of Tony's lips quirk up in amusement at his excitement.

“So, Starkanium, interestingly enough was discovered by my father. He didn't have enough fancy technology to develop it while he was alive, so he left behind clues so I could create it for him.”

“Yeah,” Peter's eyebrows furrowed in confusion and Tony could swear he saw a little eye roll in there, “but _how_ did you make it?”

“Peter!” His teacher reprimanded. Tony waved it off with another amused grin. The kid was snarky too… could this get any better?

“It's alright. He's persistent, that's good,” Tony turned to look at Peter again, and he raised his hand up to wave him forward. “C'mon up here kid. Let's get our science geek on, I'm about to blow your little kiddie mind.”

Peter seemed unsure of the instruction at first, but slowly he rose to his feet, and a series of rapid camera shuttering followed as the young boy hesitantly made his way to the front of the group.

Tony pointed at an empty spot on the carpet near his feet and Peter obediently sat down. All while staring up at the genius with wonder and amazement sparkling in his eyes. Tony tried not to go into too much detail while explaining how he re-discovered the element and began the process of building the particle accelerator. He tried dumbing it down as much as he possibly could, but it was hard explaining complicated things like particle accelerators and impossibly synthesized elements in a way toddlers could understand it.

He glanced around at the other kids, and they were all beyond confused at his ramblings, as expected, along with a few of the adults. But then he looked down at Peter, and the boy was still staring up at him in fascination, as if Tony Stark himself had hung the moon and the stars just for him to look at. So, he decided to just keep his focus on Peter since nobody else seemed to be interested in what he was talking about.

“Like-like a particle accelerator?” Peter stammered excitedly when Tony began to explain the process it took to make the element. He tried leaning closer to Tony for some reason with his growing excitement, and he didn't seem to notice that his little hand had landed directly on top of his left shoe, because apparently children didn’t understand the concept of personal boundaries at their youthful age. Peter also didn't seem all so shy anymore. Tony felt a little pride in himself for being able to draw the young boy out of his shell.

Tony grinned down at him, happy the boy was able to piece together his ramblings. “Exactly like a particle accelerator. I built it in my own garage.”

“Cool!” Peter squealed, his large grin growing wider, showing off his toothless smile. “How-how much energy did it take to power it? I bet it was lots, wasn't it?”

Tony nodded, feeling his own excitement begin to grow. The kid's elation seemed to be rubbing off on him… that is until the dumb teacher decided to ruin Peter’s enjoyment.

“That's enough Peter. I think it's someone else's turn to ask a question.” The boy in question shrunk back into himself again, removing his hand from Tony's shoe, and wrapping his hoodie clad arms around his middle, looking back down at his lap in shame as if he’d done something wrong.

Tony got the feeling that the teacher wasn't very fond of Peter, and Tony already knew he wasn't very fond of her.

In any other circumstances, Tony would have gladly put her in her place, ignored the rest of the children, and continued his riveting conversation with the adorable little science nerd in front of him, but he couldn’t. Per Pepper’s insistence, he wasn’t allowed to be rude, or harass anyone while in front of cameras, and he supposed it would look just as bad if he ignored the teachers instructions and the rest of the children.

Hands shot up again, and he had to repress an annoyed groan at the thought of having to answer more obnoxious questions. He gently nudged Peter's tiny foot with his larger one to grab the kid's attention, and he the young boy snapped his head up to stare at him in bewilderment. Tony smiled warmly at him and shot him a subtle wink before explaining one of the nauseating gold-digger's questions.

He hides his disappointment and annoyance well as he answers more exasperating questions. It was made just a little more bearable being able to spot the little happy smile on Peter's face as he stared down at the stained carpet, picking at one of the threads.

Then, the questions are finally being put on halt when Coulson steps out into the cameras’ view with an apologetic smile directed at the kids.

“Alright kids, I hate to disappoint you, but Mr. Stark is a very busy man, and he has to get back to work now.”

A collective ‘Aww’ disperses amongst the crowd of children, and Tony stands from the beanbag chair, showing off a showy grin to the group. Peter didn't lift his head to look at him, and Tony felt it was the perfect little opportunity to show off a kid-friendly, kind and caring Tony Stark that the world oh so desperately wanted to see for some reason. Then, maybe Pepper would stop hounding him about all this too.

He crouched down directly in front of Peter and used his index finger to tap the underside of his chin to direct the kid's gaze up towards him.

“It was really nice to meet you Peter,” he smiled, “never stop asking questions. I can already tell that you'll be going places. Stick to it and you might have a place at Stark Industries one day.”

The sparkle in Peter's eyes drew out a genuine smile from him, and the boy’s toothless smile was back.

“Yeah?” He giggles, bouncing a little in his excitement.

Tony nodded his head.

“Well, it was super-duper nice to meet you too Mr. Tony Stark sir. I've always really, really loved all your cool inventions!”

Tony held out a hand to him, and Peter eagerly reached forward to grasp it, shaking it wildly. It was kind of funny the way Tony's hand practically engulfed the kid's much smaller one.

“Welp,” Tony sighed. He reached out, ruffled the kid’s hair slightly then stood up from his crouch. “Maybe I'll see you around Pete.”

Peter nodded again and was thankfully oblivious to the jealous glares he was receiving from the rest of his classmates.

“Bye kids,” Tony waved, grabbing his suit jacket from Happy and shrugging it on. “Thanks for having me.”

A chorus of ‘Bye Mr. Stark's followed him out the door, and he could finally release a sigh of relief.

Boy, was he glad that was over.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG guys! I did not expect to get so much support! You guys are all amazing!!  
> Thank you so much! You have no idea how much it means to me!! So, as a thank you, I've decided to continue it :)

Tony was driving Pepper absolutely bonkers.

The class reading PR stunt did wonders to their falling stock numbers. It wasn’t at all what she, or any of the board, wished them to be, but it was a promising effort at least. The little class-visit also seemed to do wonders to Tony's newfound fascination with a certain child named Peter.

When he had first waltzed into her office after his morning at the school, she was expecting an earful of whining and complaints, because that’s just how Tony Stark worked… and that's exactly what she got. But after he got all his frustration in the air out of the way, he mentioned a particular child named Peter briefly. He bragged about his obvious above average intellect and his shy demeanor. Pepper was able to see past the nonchalant facade he played at immediately, and she let a small smile creep up her face.

It was just a minor mention here and there. Tiny tidbits she’d receive once in a while when he was seeming exceptionally distracted and excited. He spoke about the boy as if it weren’t a big deal, but Pepper knew better, because Tony Stark never willingly conversated about anything that he didn’t find to be a big deal. So, at first, Pepper couldn’t help but find it endearing and cute when he rambled briefly about the adorably shy child he had met before his face heated embarrassedly and his mouth snapped shut at the realization of his fond meanderings. Then, as time passed, he didn't seem to give a flying hoot about it, and the mentions and ramblings became… borderline obsessive. She wasn’t able to go through a hour conversation with the man without at least some mention or murmuring of the promising young boy who: _“[Peter] would most definitely treat me with more respect Pepper.”_

Sure, it was nice to know that Tony had a heart and a slight affinity towards children even though he strongly disagreed to the obvious and reasonable insinuation. And occasionally, after a long day, Pepper enjoyed listening to him passionately speak about the young genius boy that had won him over in a few short minutes as if he were his own son. The only downside seemed to be the festering feelings of irrational desires inkling in her chest afterwards. It made everything infinitely more difficult to remain professional, and it was driving her crazy…

So, she set something up. Something Tony would surely enjoy, and something she hoped to satisfy his sudden, unprecedented affection for the genius child. Maybe then he’d be able to take a breather and she’d be able to get back a life where she wasn’t hopelessly in love with her boss…

She supposed she was already too far gone for that last one.

***

“Pepper,” he whined, spinning himself in circles in her office chair. “I don't want to entertain a bunch of booger eating hooligans. Their field trip will be thrilling enough without myself present. Why are you making me go? I’ve been such a good boy this past week. I don’t deserve this kind of punishment.”

Pepper tried to keep the knowing smile at bay, because Tony was practically a master at reading her facial cues. She didn’t want Tony ruining the surprise just because she couldn’t keep a straight face.

“This is for some more positive PR, Tony. We aren't as high in stocks as we'd like, and our shareholder count is slowly depleting despite your good behavior. Carl suggested another PR stunt involving you interacting with children, because it worked so well last time.”

Tony rolled his eyes and groaned in annoyance. “Why does it have to be kids though? Why can’t people like me hanging around old people, or animals? I don't like kids. They make weird noises, and weird faces, and they pick their noses, and they ask _super_ annoying questions- please Pepper. Don't make me. I’ll even go visit that Rabie infested animal shelter to make up for it.”

Pepper smiled at him with a bemused grin, and he raised his eyebrows suspiciously at her.

“What?” He questioned warily.

“Nothing,” she shrugged, acting completely innocent, “I just assumed you had had a change of heart. You know… since I've heard nothing except ‘Peter this’ or ‘Peter that' from your mouth since you got back from the class reading a week ago.”

“That's different,” Tony protested firmly, standing from her chair abruptly and crossing his arms over his chest in a defensive stance. “Peter is intelligent, excitable, shy, and a perfect mixture of mature innocence. He isn't like other obnoxious children. He has potential. _And_ he doesn't pick his nose.”

“So, I've heard,” Pepper hummed quietly to herself, taking a seat in the chair Tony had just vacated to rearrange the mess of papers on her desk. She ignored his various protests and shooed him out of her office with a threat to make him do the field trip _and_ visit the animal shelter in he didn’t skedaddle.

Tony was _so_ gonna get a kick out of this.

***

Tony most definitely did _not_ want to go entertain another group of 8-year-olds. Been there; done that, and he wasn’t too keen on the idea of having to do it again. Although, this time, the environment was familiar and in his own home territory, which was much better than a shabby classroom with an infected bean bag chair.

So, to please Pepper, and to avoid being forced to go visit flea infested animals, he listened to her instructions and rode the elevator down to the main lobby of their brand spankin’ new Stark Tower to greet the underage guests.

He didn’t even make it 10 steps out of the elevator before he spotted a familiar head of unruly brown curls. His interest immediately peaked, and he quickened his pace. He could only hope it was who he thought it was.

The closer Tony was able to get, the better he could make out the features of the kid’s face. It was most definitely Peter. He looked downright awe-struck as he looked around the huge room with a gaping mouth while the rest of his classmates hovered near the reception desks with several chaperones to get their ID’s for the tour. He had seemed to wander a few feet from the rest, and that huge grin was on his face, pushing out the bulge of his baby-cheeks to make it even more adorable. Then, the kid’s head was turning, and his eyes were widening further as he locked eyes with Tony walking towards him from across the room.

It didn’t even take a second before Peter made the split-second decision to take off running right towards him. His little feet scampered across the tiled floor excitedly, and he stumbled slightly as he pushed his way through the crowd of people blocking his way from reaching the man. His teacher shouted at him to come back, and she even made a half-hearted attempt to grab him when he ran past her, but Peter was too fast, and he slipped right by. Tony wasn’t really sure what the shy kid’s plan was when he reached him, but it was funny to see the eagerness in his eyes as he barreled forward. Tony slowed his walking and watched warily as the kid grew closer… because he didn’t seem to have any intent on slowing down.

“Mr. Stark!” He shouted excitedly right before he collided straight into the man’s legs, wrapping his lanky arms around the man’s waist in a tight hug. Tony didn’t really know the protocol for what he was supposed to do when a kid rammed into him, but he hoped he didn’t look too ridiculous, because he could most definitely hear the shuttering clicks of cameras in the background. So, just for show, Tony awkwardly reached down and patted the boy’s back, hoping it was enough… he wasn’t really used to receiving hugs from anybody.

“Peter Parker!” His teacher shouted, storming over and looking, absolutely and genuinely, pissed the heck off. When she was close enough to them, she reached forward and grabbed ahold of Peter’s tiny arm, wrenching it backwards and causing the boy to stumble away from Tony with a surprised yelp. “Don’t you dare run off like that again!” She shoved an accusatory finger right in the boy’s face, and if everyone wasn’t so closely monitoring him, he would have had no problem with making a scene and giving this so-called ‘teacher’ a good piece of his mind. Peter was already shrinking away from her, his excited grin melting into shame and horror. Tony didn’t understand how somebody could just yell at a little, innocent face like that. It made his chest clench in a weird way, and he really, really didn’t like the way it felt.

“Now, apologize to Mr. Stark,” the woman instructed, gesturing towards where Tony was standing awkwardly just a foot away from them.

Peter opened his mouth to apologize, but Tony held up a hand to stop him and settled the teacher with a small yet forced grin and narrowed eyes. Then he turned down to look at the child at his feet.

“There’s nothing to apologize for Peter. It’s good to see you again as well. I’m sure you’re going to find this tour extremely exciting.”

Peter’s toothless grin was back, and it made Tony smile in return. The teacher, on the other hand, spluttered indignantly at being low-key shaded and snarked by Tony Stark, and cleared her throat before beginning another lecture for Peter with a much calmer tone.

“Alright, Peter. You can’t be running off again, so you have to spend the rest of the day holding an adults hand. Do I make myself clear?”

Peter nodded earnestly, looking as confident as any 7-year-old could while he puffed out his chest in a ‘manly’ manner. Then, without missing a beat he backed away from his teacher and grabbed right ahold of Tony’s hand, much to the man’s surprise.

The teacher was spluttering again before looking up at Tony to gauge his reaction. Tony’s sure he looked beyond startled while he stared down at the eager and grinning little boy who swung their joined hands back and forth as if it were the most normal thing that had ever occurred in the span of his short, little life.

“I’ll hold onto Mr. Stark’s hand, and he can show me all the cool projects. Right Mr. Stark, sir?”

Tony was so, so confused. Where did that shy little boy go? The Peter he had met last week would have been staring down at his shoes while he listened dejectedly when his teacher reprimanded him for the silliest of things.

“Sure thing kid,” Tony forced out, trying to ignore the annoyance of having to participate in the group tour longer than he had planned. He was hoping for just a small pop in with a little greeting before retreating to his lab. Now he had to suffer through the whole tour.

Peter grinned widely up at him then started tugging at his hand, forcefully, to lead him back to the group of gawking, whispering children. Tony spared a momentary glance behind him to see the stupefied teacher rushing after them and couldn’t help but feel pleased with himself for refuting all her impressions she held of himself and Peter.

The whispering became more prominent the closer they got to the group, and he couldn’t help but notice how Peter’s grip on his hand tightened somewhat when they rejoined his classmates. Tony looked down at him to see his gaze dropped to his shoes in embarrassment, but with just a slight grin peeking through.

“Will you be joining the tour group today, Mr. Stark?” The receptionist asked hesitantly, unsure of what exactly he was doing there, especially holding a child’s hand.

“Yep,” he nodded, giving no further explanation of the circumstances.

It drained his patience even further having to wait for all the ID badges to be printed and handed out, but soon enough, the group was surging forward, following after a perky, animated, young intern, and somehow, he and Peter had ended up occupying the very back of the group. Not that he was complaining in any way, because he sort of preferred the lack of attention when there was a child firmly attached to one of his limbs. He needed to get himself used to the whole concept first anyways.

Peter didn’t let go of his hand at all, and Tony was already feeling jittery at the prolonged contact, but he didn’t dare speak up. If he did, he knew it would surely wipe that grin off the kid’s face and ruin the entire trip for him. So, instead of listening to the tour guide drone on about the boring information he was already thoroughly informed about, he opted for his own entertainment while he tried to ignore the uncomfortable jittering he was experiencing in his free hand.

“What happened to shy Peter, huh?” Tony teased, nudging the boy slightly in the arm. In response, he felt a slight tug on his arm as the boy leapt forward to land on another square of grey tile. He looked up at Tony briefly for a moment before returning quickly to his game, so he didn’t misstep.

“I don’t know,” he shrugged, veering sideways slightly to miss the grouping of white tiles in front of him. Tony could only assume he wasn’t very big on talking. He seemed to be much more enthralled by the game he was playing, and Tony couldn’t help but wonder what was so interesting about it. So, he subtly tried it out himself, taking abnormally large steps to skip over the whitened tiles while still trying to maintain an inconspicuous stride to avoid drawing any attention to himself. The last thing he needed was the press getting wind of him playing a childish tile-skipping game. Peter, though, picked up immediately on what he was doing, and he turned to grin triumphantly up at the man when he noticed he was being copied.

By the time they get through with that particular floor, Tony was into it. They were both giggling and whispering as Tony helped Peter leap several feet forward by tugging him in the air with his arm and following quickly after him with a large jump of his own.

It was fun...

There was a throat being cleared, and Tony’s head snapped up to look at the waiting group standing in the elevator with raised brows and surprised eyes. Tony immediately composed himself and straightened his posture as he wiped the grin from his face.

“Sorry,” he announced, walking forward, stepping right into the group of white tiles in front of him without a care, much to Peter’s obvious disappointment.

The next floor didn’t have multi-colored tiles. It didn’t have any sort of pattern to play their game with. It was all grey, boring concrete much to Tony’s disappointment. Peter didn’t seem all that worried about it though.

“Whoah!” Peter squealed quietly, tugging harshly on Tony’s arm and veering them to the side so he could press his face against the glass partition. There was a large robotic arm on the other side, and the corners of Tony’s mouth quirked up in amusement. “Mr. Stark sir, what’s that?” Peter asked him.

“That’s a robot arm,” he answered plainly. Peter’s head snapped back, and he looked up at Tony as if he were stupid.

“Well, I _know_ that,” he giggled, “what’s it do?”

Tony smiled back and explained how the engineers were simply trying out a new program for automated construction. Peter seemed pleased enough with the answer and he turned away from the glass to continue down the hall and begin playing ‘catch up’ with their tour group. Though, this time around, he wouldn’t stop talking. Apparently, the child could only focus on one thing at a time, and his tile-skipping game seemed to have sucked up all his attention.

“-I saw _so_ many cool things like that at-at the Stark Expo,” Peter grinned. “It was so awesome. They even had this cool mini robot that can turn into other stuff. Like a Transformer! I think that was the coolest! And look-” he tugged insistently at his hoodie zipper, “-I even got a T-shirt!”

Tony smiled when he saw the small white T-shirt, reading Stark Expo across the chest.

“Uncle Ben and Aunt May bought me lots of cool things when we went.” Tony noticed a small frown fall onto Peter’s face before it immediately transformed into his signature toothless grin once again. “I got-I got this awesome Iron Man helmet, and-and I got a super cool glove too. I would have brought it with me to show you, but I didn’t even know if I was gonna see you and Jimmy said I shouldn’t because if I did see you then that would be ‘overkill’ or something and it would probably creep you out. And I didn’t want to creep you out, so I only wore the shirt. It’s so cool right?!”

Tony chuckled as Peter happily blabbered.

“It’s very cool Pete,” Tony nodded.

***

Tony really wanted to take Peter to see the arc reactor down in the basement, and he knew that it wasn’t a part of the tour. The arc reactor was still in the process of being built, and the entire project was very hush-hush.

The tour itself was almost over. They had just finished up with the presentation he had to give in one of the conference rooms, which was the first time Peter had to let go of his hand. For some reason, his hand was abnormally cold for the duration of his speech. He knew that there was only one last stop before the group of kids had to leave… he didn’t like that.

Peter was far too entertaining to talk to. He told childish, yet intriguing stories with much more vigor than a young boy should have when telling someone about his Uncle Ben taking him to the park a block down from their home. He learned much about the boy’s Aunt and Uncle; they sounded like good people, and he felt it was a shame that he couldn’t meet them. He would have praised them on their wonderful job of raising the bright, happy child beside him.

Then, when Peter wasn’t jabbering about his fun adventures with his Uncle or Aunt, he was talking about the science experiments he used to do with his father. They passed by more cool prototypes and boring WIP’s that Peter found absolutely fascinating. So that only solidified his want to see the kid getting a big kick out of seeing the arc reactor. He would have taken him to see the particle accelerator he used to develop the new element, but that was all the way back in Malibu… so that wasn’t really an option. Unless the boy’s Aunt and Uncle would allow him to take a little vacation to California with him… which he was NOT thinking about at all. Because that would be ridiculous and clingy, and Pepper would never let him hear the end of it.

“Hey, Anne, was it?” Tony called after a particularly prolonged silence from Peter. The kid probably knew the tour was almost over too and he looked to be sulking.

The tour guide turned around to look at Tony when he addressed her, and Tony continued on when he got her attention.

“Take us down to the basement. Let’s show these kids the arc reactor project we’re working on.”

“Uh, sir, are you-are you sure? That area is blocked off even to some of the staff.” Anne stammered nervously.

It didn’t take Tony long to think about it. He simply felt an excited squeeze on his hand and his final decision was already made. Rhodey would say he’s whipped, but he preferred the term ‘eccentric’ instead. “Yeah, take us down.”

Peter was jittering silently as they rode down with his class in the elevator. Tony could foresee the explosion that would occur from all his built-up excitement without a release. The kid didn’t talk when around his classmates, and Tony most definitely didn’t blame him, because those kids were little nose-picking jerks. He wouldn’t want to hang around them either if he were Peter.

The elevator doors opened, and the group excitedly streamed out of the large metal box. Peter was practically jumping at that point and Tony laughed as he tugged him into the spacious room.

There in the center, was the arc reactor, and even Tony found it impressive after all his time working on it, so everyone else was bound to as well.

There was a chorus of ‘whoah’s from the group, and he couldn’t help feeling smugly satisfied. He kept an eye out to make sure no pictures were being snapped, but otherwise turned his attention to Peter.

“Uncle Ben would have loved this,” Peter whispered in amazement as he stared up at the large contraption with wide eyes. The rest of the crowd dispersed in tiny groups to get a better look at it.

“I’m positive he would have,” Tony smiled down at him, “you should have brought him with you. I would have loved to meet him.”

Peter’s face fell at his words, and Tony instantly panicked. Had he said something wrong? Out of line? He wasn’t sure. He didn’t mean to make Peter upset.

“Oh-oh um. I’m sorry you didn’t get to meet him Mr. Stark,” Peter mumbled, dropping his gaze to the concrete floor as he scuffed his shoes absently along it… this room didn’t have colored tile either. “He always really liked you, but um… he’s dead now. I would have really like for you to meet him for real before he did though.”

Tony felt like the world’s biggest jerk. Which is probably because he was.

“I’m so sorry Peter, I didn’t know,” he said, staring down at the mop of hair on Peter’s downturned head.

Wait… If Uncle Ben brought Peter to the Expo, which was barely even a month ago, and he was dead…? Crap. This poor kid.

“It’s okay. He has Aunt May with him too. So, they can’t be too sad if they’re together, right?”

Tony’s mouth opened and closed like a pitiful fish. He didn’t know what to say. He didn’t know how to console a grieving kid who just lost two obviously important people to him… he was by no means cut out for this.

“We don’t have to talk about it,” Peter dismissed quickly, sounding much too mature for Tony’s liking, “I don’t like thinking about it anyways. I’m okay, I promise.”

Then his head was turning to look up at Tony again, and the thing that surprised the genius most was the wide grin he had plastered on his face. That was _so_ not okay.

“Kid,” Tony sighed sadly, “you don’t have to pretend that it doesn’t bother you. It’s perfectly normal-”

“No, really, it’s okay Mr. Stark!” Peter insisted, still wearing his big grin. “I remember, after my parents died, Uncle Ben told me that if I smile a lot then I can trick my mind into thinking it’s happy. And it worked too! And-and if I talk a super bunch too then I don’t have to think about it. And I really, really wanted to be happy today so I could see all your cool inventions and not be sad! So all I gotta do is smile! You gotta smile too Mr. Stark. It’ll make you happy.”

This… kid. There was nothing more pure in the world than this poor kid. So, Tony humored him and forced a tight grin onto his face.

Peter looked beyond triumphant and dove right back into a detailed rendition of a science experiment he performed on his Aunt’s poor cat.

It didn’t lessen the slight throbbing pain in his chest.

This… kid.

***

“Alright class, say thank you to Mr. Stark and Anne for taking us on this nice field trip,” Peter’s teacher instructed. As soon as they got back to the lobby, she had snatched up Peter from Tony, apologizing profusely for the inconvenience he _must have_ been put through. He didn’t even have time to brush it off and insist it was no trouble before she was dragging a distraught, flailing Peter away from him.

The children all thanked him and Anne for the tour, and he returned their thanks with a press smile. Then he noticed Peter at the back of the class again, staring down at his shoes, with his dumb teacher towering beside him.

Soon enough the kids were all being ushered towards the exit by the chaperones and teacher, and Tony panicked when he realized that he hadn’t gotten the chance to say goodbye to Peter.

He rushed up to the teacher before she could leave, and he grabbed onto her elbow rather forcefully. She looked startled when she turned her head to look at him.

“I want to speak to Peter really quick if that’s alright?”

The boy perked up at the mention of his name, and a smile crept onto his face as he peered up at Tony. The teacher looked conflicted, so Tony didn’t wait for her approval and simply reached out to Peter and grabbed his free hand. He guided the boy away a few yards so they could talk privately, and he crouched down to his level so they could be eye-to-eye.

“It was really nice to see you again Peter. I had a lot of fun today, I hope you did too.”

“Yes, bunches of fun Mr. Stark!” He nodded emphatically.

“That’s good.” He didn’t really know what else to say… what else was there to say?

“Yeah. You know, you’re super nice Mr. Stark. I don’t like talking to strangers a lot, but I like talking to you. My Auntie used to say I talked too much at home because I didn’t talk anywhere else.” Peter smiled and Tony couldn’t help but chuckle at the believability of the statement.

“Well, I can see where she’s coming from kid.”

Peter grinned at him. There was a small span of silence where neither of them said a word. Then Tony saw a small spark of apprehension flicker across the kids face before he dropped his gaze to the floor and began leaning forward and raising his arms towards the man in front of him. Before Tony knew what was happening, Peter had his tiny arms around his neck and he was hugging him tightly, pressing his little face into the crook between the genius’ shoulder and neck. It took Tony a moment, but he returned the gesture and rested his large hand on the boy’s small back.

“Thanks for everything Mr. Stark.”

Then he was pulling away and Tony watched him curiously.

“Of course kid,” he smiled, ruffling his hair gently and standing back up to his full height.

Peter immediately latched onto his hand again and Tony guided him back to his waiting teacher.

“Never give up on science kid,” Tony winked. “I’ll be keeping a look out for any outstanding achievements made by Peter Parker.”

Peter smiled widely and let his teacher grab ahold of his hand.

“Thank you, Mr. Stark,” he waved, and Tony watched from the door as the little kid clambered onto the bus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter. And I don't know, I feel like I'm writing them a little to OOC. But oh well, it doesn't matter 'cause it's an AU, right? lol. 
> 
> Anyways, thanks again for reading. Let me know what you thought!


	3. Chapter 3

Pepper's plan had failed… and miserably so, might she add. In fact, the little field trip just seemed to further the fuel of Tony's obsession, which in turn made it infinitely more difficult to ignore and suppress the urge to kiss him senseless until he shut up. God, she _so_ wanted to kiss him.

“The poor kid lost his Aunt and Uncle not even a month ago Pepper,” Tony whined petulantly, his mouth turned down into a depressed frown as he pushed random things around Pepper’s desk. “It was sometime after they took him to the Expo! I don't even- who's he living with? I don't know. I had assumed it was his Aunt and Uncle, but now they're dead. He mentioned his father once or twice, but not nearly often enough to be his permanent guardian. Maybe he’s dead too... Oh goodness and he barely mentioned his mother either. What if he's an orphan Pep? Oh God, that poor child- his happiness is going to be sucked completely out of him if it hasn't already. What should I do? Should I buy him something? Something cool? Like a new computer? A trust fund maybe? So he can go to college-”

Pepper massaged her forehead fiercely as Tony rambled passionately while standing up to pace back and forth in front of her desk. 

“Tony,” Pepper sighed quietly, only to be completely overlooked by his continuous ramblings on how to improve the boy's life after such a terrible loss.

“Tony!” She shouted. She couldn't put up with it anymore. He needed to go back to being one of those careless, selfish bastards who hated children, because this Tony Stark was tugging at her heart strings and she didn't know how much longer she could hold it together. Heck, she'd been losing sleep because of the man and his newfound inclination to jabber on about who he claimed to be ‘the cutest kid he'd ever seen’.

She wanted to meet the kid now, but she knew she couldn't. She’d get too attached. Heck, Tony Stark was attached to him, so what would that means for Pepper? It means that she didn't have a fighting chance is what it meant.

Tony's head snapped over to her, cutting off his spiel mid-sentence to concentrate on her.

“Listen, I know you like this kid, but there's really nothing we can do. You can’t let yourself get so absorbed and distracted about this. Just keep an eye out in maybe 10 years or so, and see if he's qualified for an internship, and maybe put in a good word for him when he enrolls for school. That's really the best we can do right now Tony.”

Tony's eyes narrowed at her. “Surely we can do more Pepper. The kid has lost almost everything, don't you think we should do something?” His annoyance morphed into innocent and sorrowful dismay. It made Pepper's heart clench. He just wanted to do what he felt was right.

“Tony,” she started softly, “there's a million and one orphans facing the exact same challenges as Peter. We can't help them all-”

“You're right,” Tony replied seriously, crossing his arms over his chest, “but if we can help Peter, then that only leaves a million.”

Tony and Pepper sit there in a contemplative silence as Pepper tries her best not to completely break down and give in. She wanted to help Peter, but she was so afraid with how far Tony might take this. Who knows what kind of trouble he could get into in this unfamiliar territory. It could end in so many different ways: a lawsuit, a PR nightmare, or a heartbroken 7-year-old resulting when Tony found a new interest. She didn’t want to stir the pot, and she didn’t want Tony to stir it either.

Then her door to her office was being thrown open and a ruffled looking bald man came rushing in with his tablet in hand. It was Carl from PR.

“Ms. Potts, Mr. Stark. I think you two might want to take a look at this.”

He turned the tablet in his hand to display the screen to the two, and Tony's eyes bugged out.

There, plastered across the screen, were a series of photographs taken of him and Peter. The first set were when Tony went to read at the school. One of Tony sitting in the beanbag and animatedly explaining to the boy how a particle accelerator worked while Peter gazed up at him with starry eyes. Another of him shooting Peter a wink after he had nudged him with his foot, and the shy grin the kid wore in response. Not to mention the perfectly captured moment of Tony crouched down in front of him with his finger gently propped under the kid's chin, which didn't even last for much more than a couple seconds, so kudos to that photographer. Then there was the next set of a startled looking Tony with a 7-year-old wrapped around his legs. Along with the last two pictures, morphed together in a consecutive pair. The first of Peter's arms thrown around his neck with his face pressed into his shoulder with Tony crouching there dumbfounded, and the next where he finally relents and returns the hug with a warm smile on his face, completely oblivious to the moment being caught on camera. 

The pictures were… straight up they were amazing. They perfectly captured emotions, and the lighting was perfect, not to mention the use of filters- Oh geez! That wasn't important! What was important was the fact that possibly every news outlet was spreading a lie about Tony Stark's secret soft side.

“Stock points have already gone up by 10 since this was released. Twitter is already raving about the boy. Everyone wants to know who he is,” Carl rambled quickly, excitedly stumbling over the words as he simultaneously tried to show as he scrolled through the numerous articles with headlines relating to the unknown child and Tony's seemingly unprecedented affection for him.

Pepper's mouth opened and closed helplessly, and Tony's narrowed eyes didn't seem to give her any confidence on the matter.

“What about it Carl?” Pepper asked, already dreading what was surely going to be suggested by the man.

“Well, I think we can really play off this. We're still down a few points, and I think if Mr. Stark would make a few more public appearances with the boy, we could possibly raise our stock numbers higher than they'd ever been since our recent change in production.”

Pepper grudgingly turns her head to see what Tony was thinking, and she was surprised to see a frown present on his face. She was expecting a celebration at the excuse to meet with Peter again, because that’s all he had been whining about for days.

“Why would I do that?” Tony scowled, “my public image has already been ruined. I don't need all these lies being spread about me being some fun loving, child friendly superhero.”

Carl, bless his heart, looked at Tony as if he had said the dumbest thing on the face of the Earth, and Pepper would have to agree with him. The man himself had been dealing with Tony's crap since ‘98, which was an exceptionally long time for an SI employee who wasn't Happy or Pepper. So, it wasn't a stretch to say that Carl was extremely familiar with the intricacies and idiosyncrasies of Tony Stark.

He rolled his eyes at his boss and told him off, because he knew Tony wouldn't fire him… Pepper wouldn’t let him. “Stop being an idiot Stark. You tried out the bad boy, playboy persona, and it worked before all this Iron Man gibberish. But now, you're a superhero, and people look up to you in a different way. Some are worried you're too unstable from the trauma you experienced, others are already going as far to accuse you as incapable of protecting us because of your insensitivity and lack of compassion for people other than yourself. I believe it's time for you to stop lying to yourself and fess up to the fact that you’re just a plain ol’ softy… not to mention it would do wonders for the company.”

Tony glared at him and Pepper had to muffle her amused chuckle with a hand over her mouth. Carl always knew where to hit to hurt the most.

“Thank you, Carl, I'll see what I can convince him to do,” Pepper chuckled, waving the man away and shooting him a smile on his way out.

Tony immediately turned his attention to her once the door shut and his face turned down into a sad, puppylike frown.

“I would love to see him again, but I don't want to be known as one of those baby-kissers.”

Pepper sighed. It was only a matter of time before Tony realized he wasn't this ‘tough guy’ that he’s convinced himself he was. It peeked through briefly every now and then, more so recently, and Pepper could only hope that he'd accept it when he inevitably met with Peter again.

“I'll set up a lunch date for Saturday.”

***

That evening after the field trip Peter could feel his confidence and happiness draining quickly. He couldn't help but feel miserable on the bus as the rest of the children in his class chattered excitedly about their trip. He sat at the back of the bus with his face pressed to the window and a sad frown on his face, busying himself by counting the cars they passed.

He knew he should be feeling happy, he should feel excited and amazed, because he basically spent the entire day with his hero, Tony Stark, and the man didn't even seem to mind. He should be giggling and whispering with his classmates, going on about all the cool things they saw… but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. He couldn’t put on a smile again after doing it all day.

And… he sorta was happy… he was. He was so grateful and excited that he had the opportunity to see the man again, but spending the entire day smiling and talking as if nothing was wrong… it drained him.

During the tour, he could feel his nerves bouncing every which way, and he had been sure to pump himself out up that morning so he was ready, excited and happy for the tour so he could enjoy it. He was determined to have a good day and not let it be ruined by his bad thoughts. He wanted to remember it as a happy occasion, not a sad one. And he's pretty sure he hadn't talked as much as he did since Aunt May and Uncle Ben died. No adult since their deaths had ever given him the time of day. Even the sweet CPS lady, Mrs. Hill, who was nothing but smiles, just waved his concerns off when he voiced his complaints about his foster mother.

So, it was refreshing to finally meet someone like Mr. Stark. Peter already knew Mr. Stark cared about everyone around him, it was obvious, but it was nice to know he cared about him directly he supposed. It was nice to finally have a friend again. Even if he might not be able to see that friend ever again. It was just nice to know he was there, somewhere.

He just needed to stick it out, suck it up, become the best scientist and engineer ever, just short of Tony Stark himself. That way he could go and work for Stark Industries just like Mr. Stark suggested. That way he could see his new best friend every day.

He couldn't wait another 10 years. Maybe then he wouldn't have to pretend to be so happy. That way Mr. Stark wouldn't have two worry, and they could do all kinds of cool stuff without Peter getting sad.

***

“If I go to this meeting Pepper, that means you have to pick up the kid,” Tony reasoned with her, crossing his arms defiantly over his chest.

“Just send Happy to get him Tony. I have work to do.” Pepper waved him off. She was most definitely not going to entertain Tony's ludicrous plan. They both knew that as soon as Pepper met the child she would fall head over heels. Which meant that she wouldn't hesitate to support Tony's involvement in his life, no matter what logic or reason told her.

“Are you kidding?” Tony scoffed, “Happy would just scare the poor kid. He's not too good with children, and Pete's the shy, sensitive type so you gotta be careful.”

Pepper couldn't help but roll her eyes at him. She was _done_. The pent-up tension was quickly morphing into frustration.

“Tony,” she gently reprimanded, “I'm not your assistant anymore. I run your company, per your request. Which means I have responsibilities-”

***

She didn’t know how she ended up in the car. She really didn’t. One moment she was lecturing Tony about being responsible and understanding of her demanding position he had thrust upon her, and the next he had used some weird telepathic mind trick to somehow convince her to accompany Happy in picking up Peter from his foster home.

Thankfully, she was able to grab her blackberry and laptop before she was ushered hurriedly into the car by Happy, which gave her opportunity to answer a few emails she had been reluctant to answer on the ride there.

Happy drove and she buried herself into her work, mumbling and grumbling under her breath about ‘stupid Tony Stark’, because he was.

Then, before she knew it, Happy was pulling off to the side of the road and putting the car in park. Pepper lifted her head for the first time the whole ride and her eyes widened comically as she took in the surroundings. The drastic change between the good end of Manhattan to the bad end of Queens was a bit… surprising.

“We’re here,” Happy grunted, glancing back at her through the rearview mirror. “Would you like me to come in with you?”

“No, that’s alright Happy.” Pepper answered with a small shake of her head, “I shouldn’t be more than a minute or so.”

She stepped out of the car carefully, painfully aware of how much she stood out amongst the others roaming down the sidewalk. She was dressed to the prime, with tall heels and nicely done makeup. Scowls were directed in her direction as people passed by hurriedly and she felt out of place.

She quickly hurried up the steps of the Harrison’s home and knocked gently on the door.

“Who is it?” A shrill, feminine voice rang out from the other side.

Pepper’s usual stone faced, unflappable demeanor was swiped away by her intense nerves. She didn’t know why she was nervous, but she was.

“Um,” she starts pitifully, “I’m-I’m Pepper Potts. I’m here to pick up Peter. Peter Parker. I’m sure Mr. Stark called ahead to let you know.”

As soon as she spoke those words the door was swinging open and a woman stumbled forward to lean against the doorframe. She bared her teeth in a poor attempt at a smile, and Pepper repressed the grimace as she got a waft of the unpleasant smells emanating from her person. Her clothes were tattered, and her hair was an unruly mess atop her head. 

She was very obviously very drunk.

“Pepper Potts?” she slurred, narrowing her eyes, “aren’t you famous or somethin’? I’ve seen you on TV...”

“I’m the CEO of Stark Industries,” Pepper replied kindly with an affirmative nod of her head, “I’m here to escort Peter Parker to his lunch with Mr. Stark.”

For a moment, the woman says nothing as she stared dubiously at Pepper, as if trying to decipher what exactly she was saying. Then, much to Pepper’s surprise, the woman throws her head back and bellowed loudly into the small home. 

“PETER!”

It caught Pepper off guard, and she stumbled backwards a ways as she tried to blink away the surprised look on her face. She was positive she looked ridiculous.

Then, she heard the sound of pattering feet rushing down the hall and she caught a short glimpse of bouncy curls before a little boy was standing hesitantly in the doorway, next to Ms. Harrison, with his head bowed shamefully. Pepper saw him and found herself internally cooing at his doe-like face… but she couldn't get attached. That was her new mantra.

“Have you done all your chores?” She asked him sternly. The boy, Peter, nodded his head emphatically, but he never lifted his head to look at her.

“Great.”

She gave him a good shove, which sent the boy sailing right into Pepper’s legs. He stammered out a quiet apology and retreated from Pepper shyly, chancing a questioning look back at his foster mother before reverting his gaze back to the ground.

“Have him back before the social worker comes.” The woman instructed, rubbing a hand tiredly down her face.

Pepper only barely noticed the flinch Peter gave when she reached out to grab onto his shoulder. 

“And what time would that be?”

“Next week,” the woman grunted before slamming the door in both their faces.

Pepper spluttered indignantly at the woman’s rude dismissal. She muttered and cursed to herself as she made it down the stairs, only wobbling slightly when her heel got caught in a nasty crack. She was almost to the car when she noticed that Peter wasn’t following her. She glanced back to see the boy standing at the top of the stairs toeing at the ground with his hands clasped behind his back.

“C’mon Peter,” Pepper smiled warmly, “I’ve got a surprise for you.” She opened the door to the backseat and urged the boy to follow and get in, but he remained in place.

“My Uncle Ben and Aunt May told me to never get in a car with a stranger,” Peter muttered, only glancing up for a moment to make sure the woman he was talking to could hear him. “I’m sorry.”

Pepper faltered. She didn’t really know what to say… She shouldn’t discourage the advice given by his Aunt and Uncle because that was actually practical advice that he should always follow. She _knew_ that Tony should have come instead of her.

“I’m Mr. Stark’s friend,” Pepper supplied, hoping that would be good enough to get the boy in the car. “He sent me to pick you up for lunch.”

At the mention of Tony’s title, the boy’s face instantly lit up like a Christmas tree, and Pepper immediately recognized what Tony had found so charming about the boy. The description of his two missing teeth were a bit out of date, because she could clearly see his adult teeth beginning to peek through. He was the definition of adorable.

“Mr. Stark?” He repeated, as if he couldn’t believe he had heard her right.

Pepper smiled and nodded her head. “Yes, Mr. Stark would like to see you again. If that’s alright with you, of course.”

Pepper didn’t even have to wait for an answer. Peter was already racing down the stairs and launching himself into the backseat of the car. Pepper smiled affectionately and clambered in after the young boy, listening to his excited ramblings as Happy pulled out into the traffic.

***

That’s it. Pepper was done. She was officially in love with this kid… how could she not be? He was too damn pure.

She held onto his hand lightly as she led him down the long hallway, towards the redecorated conference room, while he happily rambled on about all his favorite foods.

He paused after a moment and squinted his eyes as he looked around the hall. “This doesn’t look like a restaurant. Where’s Mr. Stark?”

Pepper grimaced slightly. Now that she was kinda sorta in love with the kid, she felt extremely terrible for what he was about to be put through. Tony was waiting for him at a table full of food in a room filled to the brim with obnoxious reporters to capture the moment.

She stopped walking and tugged on Peter’s hand to turn him so he was facing her. She knelt down to his level and grasped his hands reassuringly in hers.

“Listen Peter,” she sighed, “Mr. Stark is… he’s in a bit of trouble with the people in charge of how much money his company makes.”

Peter’s eyes immediately filled with tears and his forehead furrowed in worry. Pepper panicked and rushed to explain before any tears began to fall.

“It’s okay. He’s okay. He just needs your help.”

“O-oh…” Peter mumbled, wiping hurriedly at his chubby cheeks.

“A lot of cameras are going to be in the room where you and Mr. Stark are going to be eating lunch. You don’t have to be afraid of them, but if you don’t want to go in there… I’m not going to make you.” 

Peter shook his head insistently and he reached for her hand again when she stood back up to her full height.

“I wanna see Mr. Stark.”

“Alright,” Pepper smiled, picking up her pace down the hall before stopping in front of a pair of double doors.

She opened the doors for Peter, and he looked up at her hesitantly. She gestured for him to enter the room and he kept his gaze downcast as he basically tiptoed into the large conference room. As soon as he stepped into the room, he heard a quick succession of shuttering cameras and he flinched back in surprise. There were bright lights everywhere and there was too much chattering. He wasn’t expecting all that...

The shuttering didn’t stop, and Peter panicked. He could feel his chest start to squeeze and he had trouble catching his breath while he desperately searched the room for the familiar face of Mr. Stark. The flashing lights hurt too much, though. He clamped his eyes shut, trying to keep himself from crying… he didn’t want all these people to see him cry and think he’s a big baby. His panic continued to rise, and the shouting and shuttering just seemed to get louder and louder. Before he could flee the room, Peter felt a rough hand grab onto his arm and pull him forward. He squeaked in surprise and clamped his eyes shut. He was pushed into a warm body, and he felt the rough hand wrap around to press against the back of his head, pulling him closer to their person protectively.

Peter immediately stopped panicking. It was Mr. Stark, and there was no reason to be afraid when Iron Man was there to protect him.

Tony had moved his hand up to cup the back of Peter’s head as the boy pressed his face into his abdomen and his tiny arms tried wrapped around his waist. He glared at the group of journalists and cameramen then told them off.

“What was the first thing I told you?” He seethed, unconsciously threading his fingers through Peter’s long, unruly curls in an attempt to calm him. “I told you not to ambush him when he came in.”

The shuttering and chattering immediately stopped and Peter turned his head to look at them. They all looked like scolded little puppies.

“I gave specific instructions,” Tony continued with his rant, keeping a firm, protective hold on Peter, “I’m trying not to scar the kid, and you are NOT helping!”

Then, Peter was being wrenched out of the man’s grip with the same firm hand wrapped around his arm and he was being led to the massive table over on the other side of the room, far away from the noisy camera people. Tony was stomping angrily in front of him and Peter at once felt guilty for inconveniencing the man. It must have been his fault for Mr. Stark to get so angry.

“I’m sorry Mr. Stark,” Peter whimpered quietly, staring down at his untied, scruffy shoes.

Tony looked taken aback as he whipped his head around to look at him. “Why are you sorry?”

Peter’s lip wobbled slightly.... He didn’t want to cry, but sometimes he just couldn’t help it. There were days, and then there were Days. Before Pepper had come and picked him up… he had had one of those Days, and he was feeling a bit sensitive. Everything today was making him want to cry. “I’m sorry for making you mad. I didn’t mean to.”

Tony was panicked. His eyes immediately casted to the group of reporters who were subtly trying to capture every moment with pictures and videos. He most definitely did not need a video of him making a 7-year-old cry. Carl and Pepper would both surely yell at him.

“No, no, I’m not mad at you kid. I was just angry at the idiots unable to follow simple instructions.”

Peter’s head cocked slightly in confusion and he glanced back at the huddle near the door.

“Ms. Pepper didn’t really say why they’re here. Why are they here?”

Tony faltered a bit and busied himself with helping Peter up into his seat.

“Well, um, I’m… people think I’m a mean person, and it hurts the money my company makes. And my friend Carl said that spending time with children makes me look better, so I brought these guys in to take pictures of us having fun. Then, maybe, I’ll stop losing so much money.” 

As if on cue, Tony kneels next to Peter’s seat and twists the chair at an angle so both their faces are on display for the cameras to see. Peter frowns when he looks over to see a wide, fake grin on Mr. Stark’s face, and the loud shuttering of cameras were back… the _familiar_ sound of shuttering cameras that always seemed to follow Mr. Stark around.

A sinking feeling fell in Peter’s stomach as he thought back on all his interactions with Mr. Stark… _but no. He wouldn’t do that._

The past two, and only two, times he’d seen Mr. Stark, there had been cameras. There were cameras in his classroom when Mr. Stark answered his questions, and there were cameras in the lobby when he came down to visit his class during their field trip… Peter honestly couldn’t believe it.

He was young. He was naive. And Mr. Stark was taking advantage of that… so he could make money.

Before the cameras could snap a picture of the angry tears pooling down his cheeks, he turned his head violently to the side and crossed his arms stubbornly on his chest. He just couldn’t believe his hero would do something like that!

“Hey,” Tony gritted out through his teeth as he continued to plaster on a fake smile. “It’s okay. We just need a few pictures before we eat. There’s nothing to be anxious about kiddie.”

Peter couldn’t believe it… His hero: Iron Man, was using him as- as a pawn to help get more money. And yeah, people use him constantly… but he thought that Mr. Stark was different. He thought he actually cared.

“You-you used me…” He choked out through his tears, still refusing to look out at the cameras.

“What?” Tony breathed, sounding alarmed. His smile fell instantly, and his hand fell from the back of Peter’s chair to his small shoulder, but the boy just shrugged it off.

“You used me,” Peter whispered a little louder, looking up to meet the man’s panicked eyes. “You-you were only nice to me because you wanted more money.” Peter’s lip wobbled as he tried to hold back the oncoming bout of sobs he could feel swelling in his chest. 

“I-I-I thought you were my friend.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really really really appreciate ALL the support you guys are giving me. At first I wasn't sure if this story would be a bust or not, but I plan on continuing it :)
> 
> Thank you all so much!


	4. Chapter 4

“Wha-what?” Tony breathed out again. Seemingly unable to say any other word. What was the kid talking about? All he wanted were a few pictures. Was that too much to ask for? If it was, he’d put an end to it right now. He knew how intense and suffocating it could be for someone of Peter’s age and personality. He silently cursed himself for being so stupid and looked up from the shivering boy to lock eyes with Happy across the room.

“Get them out of the room. The kid and I need a minute.”

Happy nodded in response and quickly ushered the grumbling reporters out of the room. When they were all gone and Happy had shut the conference room doors behind them, Tony quickly dropped to both knees and twirled Peter’s chair around so they were facing each other. The kid’s short legs were hanging off the edge of the seat, and the toes of his sneakers were pressing into Tony’s chest, but he couldn’t care less.

“Kid,” he breathed again, reaching forward to grip both his arms tightly, “what in the world are you talking about?”

Peter’s breath came out in a stuttered mess of jumbled words and repressed sobs.

“I-I-I you-you were supposed to be- I thought you were! But you weren’t! You want money! I’m-I’m stupid! You were s’posed to be my friend- I just wanted a friend again!” Peter’s sobs grew more violent and they shook his whole body as he desperately tried to breathe in air to his lungs.

Tony didn’t know what to say. He didn’t know what could have possibly happened to bring out this oncoming rush of panic from the kid. One minute he was fine and the next...

“I-I am your friend,” he supplied fruitlessly. He knew he sounded desperate and worried, because he most definitely was. He had no idea how to handle this mess. What was he supposed to say to make this poor kid feel better? “What makes you think I’m not?”

Peter sniffled as his breathing calmed, but his eyes didn’t open back up. They remained squeezed shut. “Every-every time I’m with you there are cameras… you’re only nice to me because there are cameras watching so you can get money!”

Tony’s heart sank. Is that really what he thought? Well… he couldn’t really blame the kid. He did tend to be a selfish bastard most of the time; but-but this time he didn’t mean to be. He really didn’t.

“Kid… Peter, no. That’s not… no.” 

Peter’s little body started shaking again and Tony bit down on his lip hard. How was he supposed to fix this? He didn’t want the kid to hate him for the rest of his life. He liked it when the kid was around. It was refreshing to be around someone so innocent and trusting with no ulterior motive other than a search for a new friend. He didn’t want to ruin this like he ruined everything else...

“I-I know that’s what it might look like, but you gotta believe me... “ Peter didn’t give any indication that he was listening to him. “I… yes, originally, I only visited your school to get some better press, but after I met you… I like you a lot kid. In fact, you’re probably the first kid I’ve ever really put up with. You’re so good,” Tony reached up a tentative, shaky hand to cup the boy’s cheek. “And-and, I’m sorry you thought I was just using you… and, yeah, I guess in a way I am, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to be your friend too… I just- my friend said you made me look like a nicer person, and-and I actually liked having you around… so kill two birds with one stone, right?”

He dropped both hands after that, clenching and unclenching his fists nervously, because he wasn’t all too keen on the physical contact thing yet. The emotions stuff was already making him feel icky enough. It had just seemed like the right thing to do.

“S-So you really do like me?”

“Yes!” Tony cried with a breathy laugh. “Yes, kid! I like you, alright?!”

A small smile started creeping up Peter’s face, and Tony smiled back, releasing another breathy laugh out of pure relief. Peter reached up a tiny fist to wipe away the tears on his cheeks and rub at his eyes like the small child he was.

“I-I’m sorry for crying,” Peter mumbled shyly after a few moments, “I know I’m a big boy… I’m not supposed to cry anymore.”

Tony’s heart stuttered to s dead stop in his chest as he remembered a similar thing coming out of his own father’s mouth when he was around Peter’s age standing over his maternal grandmother’s casket. He shuddered at the horrendous memory that founded the base for most of his emotional constipation issues throughout his late childhood and adult life.

“No, kid,” Tony reprimanded firmly, reaching out to grip Peter’s tiny hand in his. He needed to make sure Peter understood, because goodness knows the kid is too pure and innocent to deserve to turn out anything close to the likes of him. “It’s okay for you to cry. Big boys are allowed to cry when they’re sad. Don’t let anyone ever tell you differently.”

Peter nodded silently, continuing to wipe at the tears that wouldn’t seem to stop streaming down his flushed cheeks.

“O-okay.” There was a short span of silence as the two stayed in place, waiting for whatever was supposed to happen next. Tony kept an eye on the kid and spotted the moment when he took a quick look up at him for just a fleeting moment before reverting his gaze to his lap just as quickly. It was easy to tell the kid wanted to say something.

“What’s up Pete?” Tony asked curiously, using the tip of his index finger to tap the underside of the boy’s chin, urging him to lift his head.

“Oh-oh, um,” Peter chewed roughly on his bottom lip before looking up at Tony shyly, “I-I… can I have a hug?”

His voice was as small as a squeak and his whole body curled in on itself as he tore his gaze away from the man once again. His cheeks flushed a bright red from his obvious embarrassment, and he went back to chewing on his lip. Tony on the other hand, almost rocked back onto his arse at the surprise request the kid had jumped him with. He recovered quickly when he saw the growing uneasiness permeating off the shy kid.

“Sure, why not?” Tony answered, forcing a grin onto his face.

Without a seconds delay, Peter dove towards him, and he wrapped his tiny arms tightly around Tony’s neck. In response, Tony released a pained ‘oof’ as the small body collided into his chest, but he returned the hug anyway; wrapping one arm around Peter and drawing him closer as he stood slowly from his crouch in front of the chair. Peter’s tearstained face pressed into his shoulder, nuzzling the space between the collar of his jacket and the skin of his neck, and Tony adjusted him so he settled neatly on his hip… he was just so small. He hadn’t expected him to feel so light, and he hadn't expected himself to be so… okay with it.

He felt small fists grip the back of his jacket and Peter’s face twisted and pressed firmly into the side of his neck. One of Tony’s arm was tucked beneath the kid to support him, and he reached his other around to rest flat on his back. He didn’t know what weird demon had possessed him, because there was honestly no other logical answer for the reason why he did what he did. He started humming like an old grandma, swaying back and forth, somehow knowing it would work in calming the boy down.

“You’re like Uncle Ben,” Peter mumbled happily into his neck. “He gave me really good hugs too.” There were a few moments of silence before he said anything more, dropping his voice into a breathy whisper as if he were admitting a lifelong secret. “It’s been a _long_ time since I’ve had a really good hug. I miss them.”

“Hmm,” Tony hummed, turning his head slightly to take in the mountain of food waiting to be eaten. He ignored it grimly and took a seat in his chair, shifting Peter so he was cradled comfortably in his lap. “It’s been a while since I’ve had a really good hug too.”

Peter pushed his face away from his shoulder and looked at him, his little boy features accentuating his honest worry. “I’m sorry Mr. Stark. I’ll give you all the hugs whenever you need them. My Aunt May told me I was the bestest at giving hugs.”

Tony smiled softly and he lifted one of his hands to ruffle the messy curls on top of his head. “Thanks kiddo. You can hug me whenever you want to… I think you might actually be the only one I let hug me from now on.”

A wide grin splits across Peter’s face as he stares at Tony.

“Really?”

Tony nods and Peter sits back and bounces happily in his lap. “Yep. Peter Parker is the only one allowed to give Tony Stark hugs from now on.”

Tony didn’t care how cheesy it sounded. It was making the kid smile, and that’s all that seemed to matter to him for some reason.

Peter continued to grin, but then his brows furrowed confusedly, and his smile fell into a contemplative frown. “But-but what about Pepper? She’s your friend too, I think you should let her hug you. She looks like she might give _really_ good hugs.”

Tony laughed outright at that. “Oh really?”

Peter nodded his head emphatically. “She’s a really nice lady… and I think she likes you too.” He drops his voice to a hesitant whisper and leans closer to Tony as if sharing a secret. “I mean likes you-likes you.”

Tony’s eyes widen at that and he has to refrain from scoffing at the boy’s insinuation. “Well,” he eventually sighs, “if she ever wants a hug, I am more than willing to give it to her.”

Peter seems okay with the answer and he turns his attention to the food scattered around the table with wide eyes, but he doesn’t move from Tony’s lap. He just twists so his back is pressed against the man’s chest and while he looks over the table, unsure of what he should eat first. 

Tony wasn’t quite sure what to do when the kid showed no intention of getting off him… but, again, for some reason he didn’t mind having the kid so close. It was a weird feeling… a new one, and he wouldn’t exactly hate it if he got the chance to get used to it. 

“The food look good?” Tony asks, trying to divert his own mind away from the mushy-gushy mess it was melding into. He couldn’t let himself get too attached too quick. Well, at least no more than he was already.

Peter nods eagerly, reaching forward to grab a handful of French fries. When he teeters dangerously at the edge of his knee, Tony instinctively reaches an arm out and reaches a steadying hand on Peter’s stomach to keep him from falling straight out of his lap as he reached for the food. When he grabbed ahold of what he wanted, Peter scooted back snuggly into his chest and made himself comfortable while he shoved the greasy mess into his mouth. The top of his head rested right below Tony’s collarbone, and his hair tickled the underside of his chin ever so slightly.

“Are you willing to let those people take a few pictures of us? You don’t have to if you don’t want to, but…” he trailed off, not wanting to pressure the kid into doing something he was uncomfortable with. They most definitely did not need a repeat of earlier.

He felt Peter shrug against him as he continued shoving the fries into his mouth one by one, his attention completely transfixed on the yummy snack he was feasting on.

“I-I guess, but um…” he reached up to tap his chin adorably as he finished chewing on the last fry. “I-I wanna make a deal first!’

He wiggled in Tony’s hold and he maneuvered sideways so he could look up at Tony and flash him a devilish grin. Tony quirked a brow curiously at him. Who knew what the kid wanted. Money? Toys? Whatever it was 7-year-olds enjoyed nowadays.

“You promise me… to go see your awesome particle accelerator one day.”

Out of everything he could have asked, Tony really wasn’t expecting that.

“Really? That’s all the way in Malibu kid.”

Peter remained firm in his decision, crossing his arms stubbornly over his chest and fixing Tony with a piercing glare. 

“So?” he replied indignantly, “we can wait until I’m a bigger kid, and you can take me to see it. Or we can wait until I’m a grown up and I’m working with you. We’ll have plenty of time to go see it then.”

Tony smiled at the pure innocence of this kid.

“How about a counteroffer?” Tony replied with a devilish grin of his own. Peter narrowed his eyes suspiciously but didn’t immediately veto the idea before it was proposed. “How about I bring you down to see the Iron Man suit after lunch? Then, when you’re older and you work for me, we can build another particle accelerator together.”

Peter’s face brightens instantly at the suggestion and he puts his hand forward for a shake. Tony chuckles and shakes it like the professional he was.

“So, we have a deal?” 

Peter nods eagerly, reaching forward for more fries.

“Alright, let’s call ‘em back in,” Tony says, beginning to lift Peter from his lap so he could stand.

“Wait,” Peter panics, reaching out to grasp Tony’s dress shirt. “Do I- does that mean I can’t sit with you?”

Tony frowns slightly and settles back into the chair.

“Well, we’re eating lunch together kid. You’ll be sitting right there with me,” he gestures over to the chair Peter was sitting in earlier.

Peter shakes his head and blushes slightly. “No,” he whines, “I mean… I mean right here. With you.” He pats Tony’s knee for emphasis. 

“Oh,” Tony voices, eyes widening slightly in surprise. “Yeah-um, probably not.”

He hates the way Peter’s face falls, so he’s quick to make a recovery.

“So, how about you sit with me when I take you down to the lab to see my suits? I’ll show you a few cool things. How does that sound?”

“Better,” Peter grins triumphantly, shoving more of the fries into his mouth so he could use both hands to scramble out of Tony’s lap. The genius couldn’t help but chuckle at the way he hurriedly scampered over to his own chair.

***

They eat their lunch comfortably and pose for a few smiley pictures. 

Peter was pretty photogenic as well. That surprised Tony significantly, but he didn’t mention it in fear the kid would become self-conscious and shy about it. His grins were absolutely adorable, and he could tell the media would eat it all up like candy. Peter might as well just become the new face of his company. 

He was just happy Peter didn’t seem nervous any longer.

Then, after lunch, just as he’d promised, Tony took him down to his workshop to see the suits. The boy bounced and hopped all the way down the halls and in the elevators as they walked. He grasped onto Tony’s hand tightly the entire time, just as he had during the field trip, and he was absolutely beyond excited when the glass doors to Tony’s private lab slid open with a soft whir.

“Oh my gosh!” He gasped, releasing Tony’s hand to throw his hands up to cover his mouth in astonishment. His little head whipped around every which way to take in all the cool unfinished inventions scattered around the large, spacious room, trying to take it all in at once. His poor, little, nerdy heart couldn’t seem to handle the excitement.

Tony had to jump forward in a panic to catch the kid when he tried taking off into the depths of his lab. He wrapped a strong arm around his waist and hefted him up, so his tiny back was pressed into Tony’s chest. The last thing he needed was the kid getting hurt on his watch.

“Whoah, easy kid,” Tony breathed, “be careful, there’s some things in here that could really hurt you if you aren’t careful. I don’t want your guardians getting upset because you got hurt.”

Peter waved it off as he wiggled eagerly in Tony’s grip like an impatient worm. “They don’t care if I get hurt. Look! What’s that?!” He pointed frantically over to a robotic arm in the corner, and Tony grunted indignantly at his easy dismissal of his guardians’ indifference for his safety.

“That’s Dum-E,” he answered tersely, wanting to get back to the much more intriguing/worrying topic the kid had bought up, “now tell me again about your guardians. They don’t care if you get hurt?” He wanted to be sure he got that right.

Peter continued wiggling like a small child and Tony had to tighten his hold so he wouldn’t lose his grip and drop him. Goodness, the child was definitely persistent. 

“Yeah, yeah. I’ve only been there a month maybe… they don’t care as long as we do are chores and I already did my chores for today, so it’s fine! I promise. Now what’s that?!” He pointed over to another corner at some other type of half-finished machine.

“Alright, alright,” Tony sighed, “calm down. Just wait a second. We’ve got plenty of time.”

He walked forward and deposited Peter on one of his stools, keeping a firm hold of the kid because he didn’t want to risk the kid running off into the. Especially not with all the dangerous equipment that could potentially hurt him.

“Peter, hey, look at me.” He used his hand to press on the kid’s cheek.

Peter reluctantly turned to look at him, bouncing ever so slightly on the balls of his feet in anticipation.

“Hey,” Tony placed his large hands on his tiny shoulders, “they don’t hurt you, right?” Peter shook his head emphatically and looked at him as if he were crazy. Tony sighed in relief, he didn’t think he could take it if he found out that a kid as innocent as Peter was being physically abused. 

“You’d tell me if they were, right?”

Peter stared at him, suddenly realizing the serious turn the conversation had suddenly taken. He stopped bouncing and he reached up to hold on tightly to Tony’s wrist. He fixed his expression into a serious frown in an attempt to reassure the older man.

“I promise you Mr. Stark,” then a grin split across the kid’s face again because he couldn’t hold it back any longer, “you’re my best friend now, and best friends tell each other everything, right?”

Tony couldn’t help but smile at that too. “Right.” 

After all that was cleared up, Tony helped Peter off the stool and showed him around the lab, answering any questions he might have had. They spent a little time with U and Dum-E, because Peter was absolutely fascinated with the bots and the way they responded to him. Tony didn’t even dare to introduce JARVIS, because he knew the kid would never want to leave if he did. So, once Peter was seemingly satisfied with the short tour, Tony brought him over the desk where his Iron Man suit’s guts were spilled out.

Again, just like he promised, he sat down in his chair, then reached down to lift Peter by the armpits and settle him in his lap like they’d been at the table. The boy grinned giddily as he shuffled back into a comfortable position, with his back pressed against Tony’s chest again and his feet extended so they dangled over Tony’s bent knees.

Tony reached for the screwdriver and patiently explained to the boy what he was doing as he messed around with one of the suits malfunctioning pieces. The boy listened to his voice as he watched him work with a deep-seated fascination, placing his hand on top of Tony’s every once in a while to try and get the feel of the mechanical movements he was performing. He’d bend and twist his fingers like Tony, and Tony bit back an affectionate smile as the boy wrapped his small fingers around one of Tony’s larger ones without even thinking about it.

They talked a bit too, because apparently once you got Peter talking, he couldn’t seem to stop. Tony learned about his love for Legos and kangaroos. He learned about his obsession with Star Wars and really old Sci-fi movies that he used to watch with his Uncle.

Tony quietly listened to his rambling, never asking a question until Peter seemed to run out of things to say about a particular subject. His little kiddie voice was a very different, but not unwelcome change from his usual music blasting through the speakers. It was nice. It grounded him to feel Peter’s light weight in his lap and his small hand settled on top of his while he tried to mimic his movements.

After who knew how many hours passed, Pepper eventually made her way down to the lab. Her hands were placed frustratedly on her hips as she glared at Tony disapprovingly.

“I told you a couple hours,” she reprimanded, “it’s been four Tony. We need to get him back home before his guardian starts to worry.”

Peter frowned at the mention of going home, and by association, Tony frowned as well.

“They don’t worry!” Peter insisted desperately, tightening his hold on Tony’s finger, “she said I don’t have to be home till the social worker comes by! You remember Ms. Pepper! You heard her say it didn’t you? I can stay here with you and Mr. Stark!”

Pepper frowned sadly and stepped forward to card her fingers through Peter’s hair in an attempt at a comforting gesture. It didn’t seem to work.

“You still have to go back home Petey. Tony isn’t your legal guardian, but maybe you can come and visit him sometimes.”

Peter did not seem at all okay with that compromise. He shook his head defiantly and turned his head to look up at Tony pleadingly, hoping the man would be in agreement with him.

“Sorry kiddo,” Tony sighed, “Pep’s right. You gotta go back home.”

“That’s not my home!” Peter cried desperately, “I-I don’t have one anymore! So I don’t have to go back! I don’t! They won’t even care if Mr. Stark took me. Then we could spend so much more time together, wouldn't that be great Mr. Stark? I wouldn’t have to wait until I’m old enough to get a job with you-”

“Peter,” Tony sighed, sorrowfully, “I’m sorry buddy. It just doesn’t work like that. You have to go back to your guardian.”

Tony hated that he had to say that, and he hated even more how quickly Peter ceased his arguing. How quickly he gave into the upsetting demands of the adults around him. He dropped his head and stared down at his hands dejectedly, releasing a heavy sigh. Tony couldn’t help but think that 7-year-olds shouldn’t have ‘heavy sighs’ as if they were carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders. Though, this kid probably was, and maybe that’s why he hated it so much. He hated that this pure child didn’t have the chance to experience the innocence that accompanied the younger age of living.

“Glad we’re in agreement,” Tony replied stiffly, lifting Peter off his lap, and placing him back on the ground. “Let’s get you back, shall we?”

“Okay,” Peter whispered quietly, obediently grabbing ahold of Tony’s hand and letting the man lead him out of the lab.

***

“Why don’t you walk him up?” Tony suggested to Pepper when Happy pulled in front of the sketchy looking building beside the road. He glanced up and down the street to spot the people gathered there, staring at the luxurious car they were sitting in.

“It’s okay,” Peter said, sounding mature and not at all put out by having to return to the foster home, “I can walk myself up. I had fun today Mr. Stark. Thank you for the lunch and showing me cool things in your lab.” Then the kid reached for the handle of the car door, but Tony reached out to grab his tiny hand before he could escape. 

“It was no problem Peter. I had fun today too; maybe we can do it again sometime.”

Tony spotted the forced smile Peter wore on his face. “That sounds swell Mr. Stark.”

Then the kid was out of the car, leaving a flabbergasted Tony Stark to stare at the spot he had just vacated. When the genius came back to his senses, he scrambled out the car after him, ignoring the spoofy looks he was receiving from the neighbors and people wandering the street. He ignored the way it made an uncomfortable chill go down his spine. He didn’t quite know how he felt about Peter living in this type of neighborhood.

“You didn’t have to walk me up Mr. Stark,” Peter responded blandly, reaching up to press his index finger on the doorbell. “I’m perfectly capable of walking the few feet ‘ _home_ ’.” He spat the word out as if it offended him in some way.

“Alright, I know you’re still a little upset about all that-” Before Tony could finish his thought, the door swung open and Peter dashed inside without a goodbye. Tony was then presented with the sight of a shabby brunette woman with a skimpy skirt and rumbled tank top that looked anything but attractive. She held a glass bottle in her hand and her hair was a knotted mess as she gave him a quick once over. It made him want to gag, especially with that look she gave him when she finished. He would have never been, and never would be attracted to the woman in front of him. Drunk or not, she was definitely not on the pretty side.

“You must be Peter’s guardian,” Tony tried, breaking the uncomfortable silence by clearing his throat.

“Yep, sure am,” she slurred, wearing a wide grin as she stared up at Tony, “now who’s the handsome devil that’s askin’?”

Tony frowned, deeply. She must be pretty drunk if she didn’t recognize him. Actually… he wasn’t sure he was okay with Peter staying with this woman. Maybe Pepper wouldn’t mind Tony and Peter having a couple sleepovers until Tony got into contact with social services and made sure the boy got into a good and proper home. No wonder he didn’t want to go back at the end of the day. 

“Did you know Peter’s parents?” He asked instead of answering her question, hoping to get some more insight on the boy.

She snorted in response and tipped back the bottle into her mouth.

“How should I know?” She slurred. “All I know ‘s I got a call ‘bout dat little prick right when my idiot husband thought it be a good time for a divorce. Ha! That child’s been nothing but trouble. He’s taken ‘part my toaster FIVE times! FIVE!” Her eyes rolled back, and she stumbled a bit where she stood. “He wouldn’t stop whining ‘bout those dumb robots for weeks. I swear he woke me up with those nightmares every night. God!” 

“Hammer-hammer bots?” Tony stuttered. He knew Peter was at the Expo when the Hammer drones attacked, but he didn’t know the encounter was bad enough to have nightmares about it.

“Yeah,” she slurred, waving her hand absently, “I think maybe his Uncle and Aunt, or something got killed by ‘em.”

Tony paled. His breathing stopped and his eyes widened. _No_. Not Peter. Not to Peter.

“O-okay,” Tony stumbled, trying to wrap his mind around it. He couldn’t believe it was his fault that Peter was now an orphan having to live in these terrible conditions. And there he was, living life with the smallest of difficulties, completely oblivious to the terrible problems he had caused to an innocent child.

“So,” a sultry smile grew across the woman’s face and she leaned forward to run a finger along the seam of Tony’s jacket. “Are you real busy tonight?”

He grabbed her wrist and forcefully pushed it away. He was angry. He was angry at her. He was angry at Hammer. But he was mostly angry at himself. How could he have let that slip past him?

“Yes, real busy. I’ll be back to pick Peter up in a few days. Have him pack all his bags.”

The woman’s eyes widened, and for the first time through their entire conversation she seemed to actually comprehend what was going on. The shock must have knocked her out of her drunken stupor.

“You’re foster’n him or somethin’?”

“Something like that,” Tony seethed, practically storming down the steps before he lost all control and threw a temper tantrum right there on the woman’s front porch.

He muttered aggravatedly as he climbed back into the car, and Pepper eyed him worriedly.

“I take it things didn’t go too well?”

He didn't say a word before Happy pulled up to the Tower, and before either he or Pepper could exit the vehicle he finally spoke up, spitting out instructions.

“Peter’s an orphan because of me. Now call up my legal team and have them start sorting through something to get me sole guardianship of that kid! I want it done by tomorrow, no later! Adopt, foster, kidnap. I don’t care. I want him with me before tomorrow night is over. Am I understood?”

Pepper, startled, opened her mouth to immediately object. “Tony, I don’t really think that’s a good-”

“Am I understood?!” Tony repeated, raising his voice, glaring at her through his sunglasses.

“Yes, Mr. Stark,” Pepper gave, sighing minutely to herself as she watched Tony throw open the car door angrily.

“And get Carl on the line!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading you guys! I really appreciate all the support y'all have been giving me! I'm hoping to keep updating regularly, and I'm currently working on an Uncle Tony fic, so I guess we'll just have to see. Don't worry, I'll def update this fic, because I'm immensely in love with it <3\. And im still hoping that I'm not making any of the characters too OOC. Let me know if you think I am, because I can't figure out if I'm making Tony too soft. Ugh sue me, I love soft Tony.
> 
> Oh, another thing, I'm messing around with the idea of doing the irondad bingo. I've already got my card and everything. I don't know when I'll get around to it, and I don't know if I'll be posting it on Ao3 or not. It'll all be on my [ tumblr ](https://tonystark-issist.tumblr.com/) for sure though. 
> 
> I just restarted my account after forever... so we'll see how that goes lol. Anyways, thanks again. Love you all lots! HUGS AND KISSES TO YOU ALL!!!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I _know_ I’m not the best person for this. But-but I owe it to the kid. I ruined his whole life, the least I can do is try to help him piece it back together while he’s waiting on a new family.”
> 
> “You didn’t ruin his life Tony,” Pepper replied with a soft voice, “you can’t blame yourself for what happened.”
> 
> “I _can_ though,” he argued, “because it was my fault for not stopping Hammer sooner. Now come on, we have a kid to go rescue.”

Peter couldn’t believe it! He really couldn’t! Mr. Stark was supposed to pick him up sometime in the next couple of days, and they were going to have loads of fun down in the lab again! He couldn’t wait. He couldn’t stop smiling, and it was driving his foster brothers nuts, because they refused to believe him when he said Iron Man was coming to pick him up. He couldn’t care less though, he never liked them all that much anyway.

Ms. Harrison, his foster mother, had come storming into his room with a deep frown on her face just a few minutes after Mr. Stark had bought him back. At first Peter was worried that he had done something wrong again; that he had messed up on the chores he was supposed to do before he left with Ms. Pepper. Then, the woman was throwing a raggedy old backpack at him and instructed him to pack his things.

“Stark’s coming to pick you up one of these days,” she had instructed gruffly, “pack your stuff.”

Then she had slammed the door shut, and the other boys in the room immediately swarmed around him with a million and one questions and accusations burning on their tongues Peter answered as many of the questions as he could and ignored most of Greg’s brash insults… but if he were being honest: he didn’t really know what was going on either. He just hoped he would be able to stay with Mr. Stark a little longer than a day, and since Ms. Harrison was telling him to pack… well, if he wasn’t spending the night then what other reason was there to pack clothes, right?

So, he packed up a couple sets of clothes just in case he was staying multiple nights, along with his favorite stuffed panda. He packed up his toothbrush and hairbrush that evening too, just in case Mr. Stark came tomorrow morning. He contemplated bringing his Iron Man mask and gauntlet glove for a moment or two before stuffing them into the backpack with an eager grin splitting his face. He was _sure_ Mr. Stark would want to see them. He had even said so...

***

“Pepper, are we ready to go yet?” Tony asked gruffly, still a little huffy from all that had happened the day before. He was pacing again… and Pepper was stressfully trying to stay calm. Hence, the exact reason she wasn’t.

Tony had been utterly unbearable and unreasonable ever since last night. Still, even though the legal team had it all covered… she knew deep down that it wasn’t a promising idea. Tony could probably do it, probably a much better caretaker and nurturer than Peter was currently with, but… it was just out of his element, and she could already see the downfall it would bring him. It wasn’t a pretty picture.

So, as a last-ditch attempt to convince the man that this particular direction wasn’t the best of his ideas, she grimaced apologetically and turned to look at him.

“Tony, I’m not sure you really thought this through all the way. Children require a lot of attention and a consistent schedule. You’re used to doing your own thing...Are you sure this is what you-”

“Yes Pepper,” Tony growled out, tugging on his jacket, and straightening his collar as he levelled her with his best ‘I’m the boss’ glare. “We’ve been over this.”

And yes, she did know, but that didn’t keep her from thinking that this could either end very well, or very, very badly for every party involved.

“I know, I know,” Pepper placates, raising her hands and moving them in a soothing manner to try and get him to calm down. She might find the decision less stressful if she at least knew Tony was thinking it through. “I just don’t think you realize how much work goes in to raising and taking care of a child. You’re very busy and-”

“Pepper! Listen, Peter will be better off with me than the drunk foster mother he’s living with right now. He can thrive somewhat emotionally and intellectually with me. I’ll make sure he gets into a good school where the teachers actually care about him and the kids are nice. It’s not a long-term thing, I won’t be raising him. Don’t worry, I probably won’t have enough time to permanently scar him unless I mess up… big. Trust me Pepper, I know I won’t be a good… parent, but… I’ll be much better than that-that,” he struggles to come up with an adjective to describe the woman he encountered earlier. He gave up and dropped his head, shaking it slightly and releasing a sigh. “It’s just fostering,” Tony sounded worried and dejected, as if trying to convince himself of the fact, “it won’t be long until a nice family comes along and decides to adopt Tony Stark’s adorable little pity project…”

The man grimaces angrily and turns away from her.

“I _know_ I’m not the best person for this. But-but I owe it to the kid. I ruined his whole life, the least I can do is try to help him piece it back together while he’s waiting on a new family.”

“You didn’t ruin his life Tony,” Pepper replied with a soft voice, “you can’t blame yourself for what happened.”

“I _can_ though,” he argued, “because it was my fault for not stopping Hammer sooner. Now come on, we have a kid to go rescue.”

***

As soon as Tony knocked on the door, he was met with the sound of tiny footsteps pounding against the floor inside the home. The door flung open and he was met with a grinning Peter Parker, with a raggedy backpack slung over his shoulders. He bounced eagerly for a few moments as he stared up at Tony, then immediately took a dive for the man and wrapped his tiny arms around his waist, pressing his cheek against the man’s stomach.

“Hey kiddo,” Tony greeted with a smile and a chuckle as he patted the top of his head in response. “You ready to go?”

Peter released him and nodded his head emphatically, reaching up to grasp the straps of his pack tightly. “Yep, I got pajamas and two sets of clothes. I didn’t know how long I was supposed to stay.”

Tony frowned slightly. Did the kid not know what was going on? Had his Foster Mother not told him that he was going to be living with Tony now?

He could see this as being a very _fun_ conversation. Goodness, he hoped this was what the kid wanted. He knew that he would most definitely not want to live with the man who had killed his parents, real or pseudo.

“Aww, kid,” he sighed amusedly, with a slight tinge of nervousness lining it, “I think you’re gonna need to pack a few more things than that.”

Peter’s eyes widened into huge saucers, his forehead furrowing in confusion. “How-how long am I staying? A week? Wait, no, I have to be back for the Mrs. Hill when she visits next week-”

“C’mon kid, let’s pack up the rest of your things,” Tony instructed, veering around the topic for the time being, ushering the kid back into the small home without even answering his rambled questions. He nodded in greeting to Ms. Harrison, who was standing in the Living Room, watching them with a scowl as he entered the home uninvited.

He grimaced when he took in the surroundings. It was so dark… and smelly. The carpet had definitely seen better days he was sure, and there was… well. It wasn’t all that great to look at. He’d just put it at that.

“Where’s your room kiddie?”

Peter’s confusion slipped momentarily, and he grabbed onto Tony’s hand to lead him down a skinny hall to his room. They entered, and Tony’s eyes widened when he was met with three other boys lounging on their bunks.

“You’re Iron Man,” one of the kids announced with a wondered glimmer in his eyes as he stared up at Tony.

“Yep,” Tony winked at him. The age gaps between them was by several years at least. The youngest being at least 5 and the oldest at most 13 or 14. He always did enjoy their starstruck stuttering and gaping though, young or old.

While he addressed the other boys politely, Peter scrambled across the room towards his bed, and Tony watched him as he pulled out a box from under the bunk.

“What do I need to bring with me you think Mr. Stark?” Peter asked, ignoring the quiet murmurings of the other boys in the room.

“All of it,” Tony responded with a small knowing grin growing on his face. Peter’s head snapped up to stare at him with those wide eyes again, and Tony felt giddy begin to pool in his stomach… or was that fear?

“W-wha?”

Peter looked halfway between passing out and having a heart attack. Poor kid.

“Yep. You’re going to be staying with me from now on kiddie.” He smiled and watched as a wave of various emotions washed across the kid’s face. He was hoping an ear-splitting smile to be the final result, but he was met with a sullen, confused frown as he stared dumbly into the box of belongings at his feet. Tony supposed he probably deserved that for letting his Aunt and Uncle get killed.

“Mrs- Mrs. Hill says I’m supposed to stay here from now on.”

Tony swallows down that annoying lump in his throat. He _knew_ the kid liked him, heck, the boy was on the verge of throwing a hissy fit when he and Pepper had to take him home yesterday. It was just… knowing the fact that he was the reason behind all this pure kid’s misery was really doing a number to his self-confidence and self-image.

“Yep, already spoken to her and everything. She’s going to meet us at the Tower to check out my home and make sure my Living Space is… safe for you to live in. So, let’s get going before she starts getting antsy.” He juts his thumb over his shoulder, towards the open door to the room.

His hands were sweating now… Gosh! Why was he so nervous? It was just a kid!

Maybe Pepper was right… he should have thought this through a little more.

Tony watched as Peter’s lip slowly began to tremble, nervously wringing his hands in front of his body but refusing to allow the discomfort to show on his face. Then, geez! Then the glistening tears started to form in his eyes, and he panicked. Why was he crying?! He floundered for a moment, then realized that he should probably step forward to try and console him, but the kid beat him to the punch. He fumbled as he violently thrashed to shred the backpack from his shoulders as quickly as possible and dived straight towards Tony, lifting his arms to be held, and Tony immediately complied without even realizing he had done so. Thank goodness he wasn’t actually upset about having to live with him. Tony was pretty sure this was a good reaction… happy tears.

HIs nerves quickly dissipated when he realized the kid wasn’t absolutely appalled by him and he noticed how the tiny kid fit perfectly into his arms. His arms wrapped tightly around Tony’s neck while he pressed his face into the crook between his shoulder and neck. His jean clad legs wrapped tightly around the man’s waist and Tony used one arm to support him and the other to rub his back, because he was pretty sure that was what you were supposed to do. The wet tears were very noticeable once they had soaked through his shirt and he felt the moistness forming on his shoulder. He adjusted the kid, gracing him a few more moments to hide in his shoulder before fitting him neatly onto his hip. The kid simply responded by somehow pulling himself closer, fisting Tony’s collar in his hand. Tony smiled goofily to himself and used the arm he was using to support him to clap his hand reassuringly on the kid’s scrawny leg while he used his other hand to reach down and grasp onto the straps of the discarded backpack.

He wanted to get out of there. The other kids were just staring… and it was getting kinda weird.

“One of you wanna help out and grab the box?” He asked, addressing the boys standing awkwardly around the room and pointing to the sad looking box sitting in front of the boy’s bed. All three immediately dove for the cardboard box, fighting over who should be allowed to help Iron Man, and Tony simply shrugged the backpack onto his shoulder and used his free hand to begin rubbing Peter’s back again as he exited the room. He vaguely registered one of the boy’s opening the dresser on the far side of the room and stuffing an armful of clothes into the box as well.

“Are those all your things?” Tony asked the kid quietly when he stepped out of the cramped house and back outside. “One of your buds grabbed your clothes, I think. Anything else you need?”

He felt a slight shake of a head against his neck, and he received no verbal response, so he thought that was good enough. If he needed to buy Peter more clothes, which he was definitely going to do anyway, then he’d just do it. He gestured for the older boy who carried the box outside to hand the box of belongings over to Happy, who was waiting patiently next to the open trunk of the car. No words were exchanged as the boy shyly handed over the box of clothes and personal belongings to the driver then retreated to the front door where the other two boys were peeking out curiously.

Tony gave them a quick wave goodbye and opened the back door to the car, where Pepper was waiting with her phone in hand, and carefully climbed in, only stumbling slightly with the extra weight added to his side. Peter was still clinging to him tightly when he fell into his seat, adjusting the kid to his front before he sat so the weight wouldn’t crush his leg. The distressed boy definitely wasn’t making any moves to be letting go anytime soon, but Tony was pretty sure he’d stopped crying by then.

“Hey, kid,” Tony whispered softly, closing the car door so no nosey passersby could spy on them, because they most definitely already were, “you’ll need to let go of me to get buckled up. Safety first and all that, right?”

Peter’s head lifted from its hiding place, but he didn’t unwind his arms from Tony’s neck. He looked down pitifully at the open seat between Pepper and Tony through his blotchy eyes before returning his face quickly to Tony’s neck, an immediate ‘no’ to Tony’s _suggestion._

“I know,” Tony sighed reassuringly, rubbing his back, “I know.”

He didn’t really know what else to say, so he settled for saying nothing else, waiting for the kid to get it all out so they could buckle up and get going. He risked a glance over at Pepper and found an unfamiliar expression on her face as she stared intently at the small boy curled around him. He noticed the way her gaze flitted up to his face with an adoring smile before quickly looking away when she saw him staring back. He grinned at the way redness began to rise all the way from her neck to her cheeks.

He was just about to tease her about it, but then Happy was climbing back into the driver’s seat and starting up the car, which meant he had to loosen the kid up to buckle him safely to the seat. He wasn’t about to risk the kid’s life and accidentally kill him on his first day in his care… gosh. Goodness knows that would be exactly what happened if he didn’t buckle the kid up. Murphy’s law and all that. Not to mention all the gods seeming to be routing against him lately.

“Alright kid, c’mon,” Tony spoke up, tugging slightly at the kid’s form to unwind his arms. Peter quietly complied and let Tony manhandle him into the center seat and buckle his seat belt as if he were a baby.

He sniffled and wiped his nose with the sleeve of his jacket. “Thank you so, _so_ much Mr. Stark.”

“No problem kiddo,” Tony smiled down at him, draping his arm over the kid’s skinny shoulders, and tugging him into his side.

***

Mrs. Hill was indeed standing right outside the Tower when they arrived. She looked eager, exasperated, and nervous all at once. 

“Right here Hap,” Tony instructed abruptly, gesturing to the sidewalk at the front entrance of the Tower alongside the street.

Peter was tucked tightly into his side, because apparently the kid was a little cuddle monster. Though, Tony already knew that considering the constant physical contact the kid seemed to insist on the past few times they’ve been together. It was new… different, but it wasn’t absolutely appalling like he would have expected it would be a month ago.

Happy pulled up to the sidewalk as instructed, and the fidgety Mrs. Hill jumped back in surprise when she saw the sleek black car pull up next to her. She stared at the car with wide eyes as if she were still denying the fact that Tony Stark had called her that morning insisting on a home visit to finish the usually long, grueling process of being accepted as a foster parent. Though, he was Tony Stark, and he had so much money and influence it barely even took a day to make it through all the mumbo-jumbo. Plus, his legal team was pretty stinkin’ good.

He gently tugged Peter away from him so there was enough room to undo both their seatbelts. The kid hadn’t said a single word for the entire ride, which was a bit odd… but Tony assumed he was just in shock or something along those lines. How could you blame the kid? He was going to live with possibly the most famous man on the face of the Earth. Any sane person would be in shock too.

He opened the door to the backseat and slid out with his usual, practiced grace, and Pepper opened her own door to do the same. He noticed Peter hadn’t followed him out, so Tony stuck his head back into the car and put his hand out to help him out. The kid shyly grasped onto the man’s outstretched hand while eyeing the social service lady, Mrs. Hill, with a hesitant look in his eyes. As if she were going to ruin his new perfect reality and instruct Tony to take him back to his former Foster Mother.

“Pull around to the garage Happy and take the kid’s stuff up to his new room, would ya? Thanks,” Tony called to the driver before slamming the car door shut. The car peeled away from the sidewalk with a slight screech to the tires and it disappeared among the mass of vehicles.

“Mrs. Hill,” Tony addressed, turning to the woman, and sticking out his hand to her in greeting. Pepper immediately joined his at his side with a kind smile of her own, shaking the woman’s hand as well. Peter stuck close to his side, wrapping a loose arm around his leg, and tucking himself under Tony’s other hand so the man had no choice but to settle it atop his head.

“M-Mr. Stark. Ms. Potts,” she greeted, adjusting her shirt, clearing her throat, and moving away a few loose hairs that had fallen into her face, completely flustered in the presence of the two celebrities. “So, um, shall we get started then?”

Tony gave her points for trying to stay professional.

“Of course,” Pepper smiled sweetly, gesturing for the woman to follow her. Always the charmer, Pepper was.

“C’mon Pete,” Tony leaned down to grab the kid’s hand and tug a little to move him forward. When the kid didn’t move, he looked down curiously to find those wide, innocent eyes staring up at him with a thankful wonder, contradicting the pouting, wobbling lip set below them. Then the kid slowly lifted his arms again to be held and Tony had to subtly bite down on his lip to hide his grin as he crouched down to lift the child into his arms. Just like earlier, Peter spooned himself to Tony’s chest, tucking his face between his neck and shoulder. Tony didn’t even bother to move him onto his hip this time, just hugging the kid close and enjoying the unfamiliar warmth already melting his frozen heart.

He chuckled under his breath and followed the two chatting women into the building, ignoring the wide eyes of his employees and reporters that followed him and Peter as they walked through the luxurious lobby. 

He felt smug… Totally proud of the fact that, yeah, he was hugging a tiny kid to his chest without looking detested. He couldn’t wait for Happy or Carl to fill him in on the new gossip amongst his loyal employees that was surely going to spread wildly soon enough.

They reached the elevator and when Mrs. Hill turned to look at him, she jolted back slightly at the surprise of seeing Peter in his arms. She quickly recovered though and turned her gaze down to the clipboard of papers in her arms to flip through them distractedly.

Tony shot a quick grin and wink Pepper’s way while they ascended to the penthouse, and the woman just rolled her eyes at him in response. He couldn’t help but notice that her cheeks pinkened just a little bit… that’d been happening a lot lately.

The elevator dinged to announce their arrival at the uppermost floor, and Tony stepped out in his usual strut-like gate with his chin lifted and a child tucked comfortably against him, chest to chest. Peter’s head lifted slightly to watch the passing view of the penthouse with a modest interest, meeting eyes with both the woman following behind Tony before letting his head fall back onto the man’s shoulder.

“So, what exactly is in need of your approval?” Tony asked, turning slightly to look over at Mrs. Hill curiously.

“Well-well um, your home must be an adequate size to accommodate- um,” she glanced around the spacious suite with wide eyes before turning back down to the paper with a distraught, yet contemplative look, “um, I’ll just check that one off.”

Tony snorted softly in amusement and Pepper whacked him in the arm, shooting him a glare. Peter giggled when she did that.

“Um, also, the kitchen. You need to have a sufficient food and water supply.”

Tony quickly led the small group into his spacious kitchen and opened the fridge to show off the large variety of food JARVIS kept stocked in there to make sure he didn’t end up starving because he forgot to order his own food. He watched with suppressed amusement as the befuddled woman numbly nodded her head in approval, jotting down another note on her paper.

They went on like that. The social worker listed off a home requirement and Tony either led her to an area so she could approve it, or she took a quick, confounded glance around before checking it off herself. Her nervous jittering didn’t seem to cease throughout the whole ‘tour’.

“Do you have a room prepared for Peter to stay in?” Was the last thing on the list, which seemed to peak Peter’s interest. His head snapped up and he stared at the side of Tony’s face with wide questioning eyes, looking the most alive he’d been since Tony broke the news to him.

“Of course,” Tony scoffed indignantly, as if she even had to _ask_ , before quickly spinning on his heel to lead them down the hall. Right to his ‘used to be’ guest room that he had renovated that morning to accommodate Peter. It was still a bit of a work in progress of course. He opened the door to reveal a normal looking guest room, besides the Star Wars themed bedspread covering the mattress and little Iron Man night light plugged into an outlet near the bed.

Peter wriggled excitedly in his hold, and Tony struggled to adjust his grip before he dropped the kid. He laughed at the kid’s exhilaration to see his room and set him gently on his feet. Peter immediately took off running towards the Queen-sized bed at the center of the room. He leapt onto the bed and jumped up and down on the bouncy mattress excitedly, grinning the entire time.

It seemed that the normal Peter was back.

“This is so cool Mr. Stark!” He shouted, grinning happily while he continued to bounce. Then, he spotted his box of belongings tucked away in the corner and he jumped down to rifle through it with a newfound vigor.

“Well, we still got a little decorating to do, but I’ll leave that all up to you. We’ll go out shopping together soon or something,” Tony smiled, shooting Peter a quick wink. Then, he turned back to the social worker to look at her expectantly.

“So, what’s the verdict?” Tony asked, tapping his foot impatiently on the carpeted floor.

“Uh-uh, everything looks fine Mr. Stark,” Mrs. Hill stuttered, “the only correction would be to relocate your alcoholic beverages to a place where Peter won’t be able to reach them.”

Tony nodded absently. Just a bit peeved off at himself for not thinking about it before.

“Great, everything’s set?”

“Well-well it looks to be that way Mr. Stark. I just need you to sign here,” she held out a pen for Tony to take and pointed to a line at the bottom of the page. Tony grabbed the pen and messily scribbled out his signature then thrusted it back into her hand.

“Alright,” he clapped his hands together, “it was nice meeting you. Pepper will show you back to your car.”

He was eager to dismiss the stranger from his home so he could get on with his life, but she didn’t seem as eager to leave.

“Okay,” she mumbled incoherently, “um, one of my colleagues or myself will stop by every once in a while, for scheduled visits to make sure everything is working as it should.”

“Yep, sounds good. Bye,” Tony dismissed hurriedly, ushering the two women out of the room. Pepper gave him a stern glare for being rude, but he ignored it and waved them off.

When he turned back to look at Peter, the kid was holding out a toy Iron Man helmet towards him with a proud grin on his face, showing off the teeth growing in.

“Look Mr. Stark! This is my helmet I told you about! I was wearing it when you saved me from the robot at the Expo!” Peter plopped the bulky helmet onto his head and looked up, so the slanted eyes of the toy helmet were directed right at him.

Tony patted him gently on the helmet and smiled warmly.

“Well, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say _you_ were Iron Man.”

Peter giggled and tugged off the helmet, leaving his hair in a major disarray. Tony instinctively reached out to smooth it down and internally cringed at how dad-like he had already become… for god’s sake it had only been a few hours! And he wasn’t even technically a dad. Just a Foster Dad. Big difference, because calling ‘Tony Stark’ a Dad would really be pushing it. Goodness knows how terrible his poor kid would end up, having him as a father.

“I can’t be Iron Man Mr. Stark,” Peter laughed, “I’m too little!” He threw his arms in the air for emphasis.

Tony squinted his eyes playfully and hummed in disbelief.

“I don’t know,” he muttered, “I think you’d be able to pull it off pretty well Zippy.”

Peter laughed loudly, his wide grin splitting across his face and his eyes sparkling with an exuberant excitement. It still baffled Tony with how quickly he was capable of changing moods.

“C’mon we can unpack later; I have someone to introduce you to.”

Peter’s eyes widened curiously.

“Who?” He questioned with a whisper.

Tony grinned and lifted the boy by the armpits to sit him on the end of the bed. He took a seat next to him and fell backwards into the mattress. Peter quickly followed suit and plunked down next to him, pillowing his head on Tony’s outstretched arm, and following his gaze to the ceiling curiously.

“JARVIS? Would you like to greet our new house guest?”

“Of course, sir,” JARVIS immediately responded, “Hello Master Peter.”

Peter’s little boy gasp was probably the cutest thing Tony had ever heard in his entire life… god that sounded cheesy.

“Whoah! Where is he?” Peter stared intently at the ceiling to figure out why exactly the voice was there, throwing himself every which way in an attempt to sit up.

“Do you know what an AI is?” Tony asked him, arching a brow curiously.

Peter scoffed at the question. “ _Of course_ I know what an AI is Mr. Stark.” He rolled his eyes like a petulant little child, and Tony laughed outright.

“Oh right, of course. How could I forget? You know everything,” he replied sarcastically. Peter’s hand lifted to his mouth to stifle another giggle and Tony reached up to ruffle his hair.

“So, JARVIS, this is the new second-in-command. What he says goes… with your extreme discretion of course.” He didn’t want the kid going all willy-nilly and making him go bankrupt by buying Disney or something like that…

“Of course, sir,” JARVIS responded, sounding slightly amused.

Peter asked a series of several questions revolving around JARVIS, and Tony answered them all, wearing a proud smile the entire time. Then Tony looked down at his watch to see the time, and his eyes bugged out.

“Alright, it’s getting late Cubster. Why don’t we order a pizza and watch a movie then get to bed?”

“Yeah,” Peter nodded eagerly. His grin was bright, but then it immediately fell into a worried frown. “Wait, I didn't finish my weekend homework for school tomorrow.”

Tony waved it off. “Don’t sweat it kid. You’re starting at your new school on Wednesday anyway. I wanted to get you out of that dump as soon as I could.”

Peter’s eyes glistened with happy tears as he down at the man lounging on his bed.

“Really?”

Tony nodded.

Then Peter dove forward to give Tony another hug.

“I really can’t thank you enough Mr. Stark.”

“It’s the least I can do kiddo,” Tony sighed, allowing a small tinge of guilt to build back up in his gut.

Gee, it was definitely going to be a long, self-hating night. He could already see it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, I'm zipping through this fic aren't I lol XD  
> I just love writing it, it's a lot of fun. I'm such a sucker for soft Tony.
> 
> Anyway, Thank you so much for reading and supporting this fic. Like, seriously, y'all are amazing, I love every single one of you and every single one of your comments. It means the world to me that you guys actually enjoy this X)  
> I love hearing from you guys, I hope you all have a great weekend.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Tony's a bit of a drunk, self-hating mess in this chapter, but it's not downright terrible.  
> It get's better towards the end though :)  
> Also, LOTS of Pepperony!! And lots of cute Peter!!  
> Thanks for your support guys!

Peter had long since been put to bed. It'd been well over an hour and Tony was already slowly beginning to lose himself to a very satisfying bottle of Whiskey. He knew he shouldn't; he knew it made him no better than the woman he took Peter away from… but the dull burn he felt as it ran down his dry throat did wonders to his anxiety. It warmed his stomach and the familiar sensation brought back the fresh feelings of relief developed from years of codependency relying on drunkenness to soothe his run-wild thoughts. He polished off another glass and felt the immediate effects. The migraine that had developed over the course of the evening was already beginning to dull, and the newfound worries about Peter's wellbeing was slowly being clouded with the muddled mess of irrational thoughts that typically followed after two or three generous servings of the amber liquid.

He didn’t really know what had overcome him, because, so far, he loved spending time with Peter. The kid was charming, adorable, and sweet. There was just one thing that irked him… He noticed it frequently over the course of the evening.

The kid would talk and talk and talk, just as he had on previous visits, and Tony would smile and nod until Uncle Ben or Aunt May were mentioned almost without a second thought. The kid would say their name, and it definitely wasn’t hard to miss the flicker of sadness that fled across his face before quickly reverting back to his happy grin to finish off his exciting story. That was all Tony’s fault. He just… he couldn't get it out of his head. _He_ was the reason Peter was where he is. _He_ was responsible for the kid's grief, and for some reason he just couldn't find it in him to forgive himself.

So, like he always did when something even mildly unsatisfactory displeased him… he downed another glass of Whiskey with a tight frown, hoping the self-loathing would go away soon so he'd be able to sleep through the night.

“Tony?” The tone was soft and worried from across the room.

His head snapped over to the side of the room when he heard Pepper call his name.

“Pepper!” He spluttered in surprise, scrambling fruitlessly and clumsily to hide the offending bottle of amber liquid. He never liked that look she got on her face when he drank, and he knew this time her disappointment would be even worse.

“Tony, what are you doing?”

She sounded more sad than angry this time around. Her brows furrowed as she shuffled around the end of the couch to sit down heavily next to him. She reached her hand out, intending to grasp his shoulder like she used to do on occasions just like this, but she retracted it quickly when she realized what she was doing. Tony hated that she did that. He hated that things just couldn’t go back to the way they were before Hammer. Where Peter wasn’t an orphan, and where Pepper wasn’t afraid to touch him.

“Is this too much for you?” She whispered, leaning in close with a worried frown etched into her face. “Are-are you rethinking having Peter here. Fostering isn't permanent, you know. So you still have the chance to-”

“No, no, it's not Peter. Peter's great,” Tony admitted, hanging his head in his hands and drawing in a couple deep breaths. He didn’t need to panic in front of Pepper.

That's when Pepper finally rested her hand on his shoulder. “Tony,” she whispered softly, “you can't be doing these types of things with Peter around. You can't get yourself drunk like you used to; you have an important responsibility now. It's no better than what you took him away from, and it's not a good influence for him to have.”

“I know!” Tony shouted, standing from the sofa abruptly and spinning on his heel, storming into the kitchen in an attempt to get away from her and her stupid, logical reasoning, but not without taking the bottle with him. “I know I'm not good enough for him, alright?! I get it.”

Pepper hurries after him. “No, Tony. That's not what I said.”

“That's what you thought though,” he muttered, “and you're not wrong. This is why I stay away from kids Pepper! They-they latch onto messed up, sick bastards like me to look up to, and it’s not good for them! Nobody needs to look up to me like that! No child needs to look at me and say they want to be just like ME Pepper! Do you not understand that? You ruined him! You ruined that perfect, innocent child! You're the reason I met him! You're the reason I'm attached! You should've known better than to shove something so innocent into my face like that! You _know_ I always want what I shouldn’t have. And selfish bastard like me can't just let go of something they want, and now I want Peter! I’m selfish, I want him, so I took him. I get it,” he gritted out through clenched teeth, “I’m not good for him. Trust me, I know.” They both stood there in silence. Tony heaved in breaths, grasping the edge of the counter angrily as he tried desperately to press down on the anger accumulating down in his gut.

A low growl escaped him, and before his whiskey-muddled mind could catch up with his body, his gaze was flickering to the almost empty bottle near his hand, and he angrily threw it against the wall across the room, raining the room in shattered glass.

This was exactly why he shouldn’t ever have a child anywhere within his near vicinity… This was why Pepper was so afraid of trusting him...

“I killed them,” he rasped, “I ended up killing his freaking Aunt and Uncle through my recklessness, and he's too thick-skulled to even see it! He trusts me! He’s forgiven me! He looks up to me and-and I just can't!”

“Tony, hey,” Pepper stepped forward and grabbed ahold of his hands pulling him closer to her. “None of that was your fault; it was out of your control. You're doing the right thing _now_ , and that’s what’s important. You're so good for him. You're doing a good job. I promise you.”

“I _can’t_ Pepper,” Tony groaned, almost pleading for her to understand. She never understood… She was supposed to agree with him and call up his lawyers to take Peter away despite his inevitable protests. She was supposed to be the good one; the responsible and reasonable one. She needed to get Peter away from him before he mucked him up. Out of anyone in the world, _she_ of all people should know this. “I can't get attached to him Pepper. I can't get him attached to me. I'm just- he's just going to stay here until I can find him a better family. I can’t- I can’t...”

“Tony, listen to me,” Pepper instructed him firmly, reaching up to grab ahold of his face and turn him to look down at her. “You're so good with him. I know you adore that boy already, and you haven't even known him that long. Just promise me you won’t distance yourself from him, he needs you. He's already lost so much. I don’t care how much you think you shouldn’t… you need to listen to me.”

Tony stays silent as he absorbs her words.

Pepper never lied to him… she was always right. Maybe this one time he could trust her judgement.

“And I'm so, so proud of you Tony Stark. So proud... but you can’t do this anymore. You need to be ready if he needs you.”

Tony sighed and bowed his head forward far enough to rest against hers, breathing her all in. He holds back the oncoming threat of tears at her kind words. It’d been a while since he’d heard those words directed specifically at him.

“Thank you Pepper,” he breathed, relishing in the closeness.

“You deserve something good for once Tony. Just try not to ruin it for yourself, okay? Promise me?”

“I promise,” he whispered.

They stand there in silence, heads pressed together, and hands clasped between their bodies. Then, Tony's leaning in and pressing a gentle kiss to her lips. She reciprocates in kind, tightening her hold on his hand as she presses forward into him.

He moaned happily as he felt her lips move against his. He’d been wanting to feel the familiar sensation again ever since their first kiss up on that rooftop a month ago. Now he had it. Pepper was pressed close to him, her hands were threading through his hair, and the kiss was the softest he’d ever had.

But she broke away.

“Tony we can't,” she groaned, pushing away reluctantly. Tony, unwilling for the moment to end, continued moving with her, pressing desperate, chaste kisses to her lips in hopes of changing her mind. But he pulled back when he realized she wouldn’t be coming back.

“Why not?” He begged quietly, staring down at her with an intensity she’d never seen before.

“I-” she started, looking over his expression, hoping her excuse lied somewhere between the stress lines of his face.

They stood like that, staring at each other, wrapped in each other's arms. Neither willing to break away completely.

“Sir, I believe it may be best to go check on Master Peter.” JARVIS interrupted with a tinge of worry lacing his voice.

“Mr. Stark!” A loud wail echoed down the hall, followed by pattering feet. Pepper wrenched herself from Tony's grip as little Peter appeared from the hall, tears streaming down his face, arms flailing, and mouth open to release loud whimpers and tearful sobs.

Tony snapped to attention; he took little notice of the shattered glass lying on the floor and rushed forward to kneel in front of the kid before he could make it any further into the kitchen. He didn’t need pieces of glass getting stuck in his tiny feet because of another one of his careless actions.

“Peter, hey, what's wrong Buddy? Tell me what's wrong.” He only slurred his words slightly, trying to push down on the thick cloud in his mind, because he needed to be _here._

As soon as Tony was within reach, Peter reached out with one hand to grasp onto the man’s shirt and lifted the other to kneed his knuckle into his eye in an attempt to repress another oncoming flood of tears. Small sobs and hiccups wracked his small frame and Tony reached out to brace a strong hand against the boys hip, so he didn't keel over.

“Tell me what's wrong Buddy, or else I won't be able to help.”

Peter lowered the hand rubbing at his eye and looked at him with the most pitiful, little-boy expression Tony had ever seen. He reached his other arm up, over his shoulder, and pulled himself against the older man in a tight hug.

Tony smiled slightly to himself and patted his back with one hand and snaked the other slowly around the boy’s waist, pulling him that much closer. Then, he stood up, settling Peter on his chest, and tucking the kid's head beneath his chin. He waited patiently for the kid to catch his breath to give him the opportunity to explain what had him so freaked out.

Several tears, sobs, and shared looks with Pepper later, and Peter was busy explaining himself with a tiny, unsure voice.

“There-there's a mean robot in the closet,” Peter whimpers, pressing his face into Tony's neck when he finally admitted the problem after his lengthy introduction.

It took all of Tony's sober willpower to keep himself from giggling at the pure stereotypical-ness of the statement.

“Oh, Peter, sweetie, I'm sure there's not,” Pepper stepped in when he didn’t say anything, reaching out to rub her hand comfortably along the little boys back.

“But-but-but I saw him!” Peter insisted, “He was there, and he was so mean!”

Pepper opened her mouth to retort, but Tony shot her a quick look and a reassuring wink, momentarily forgetting about his whole ‘not good enough for Peter’ epiphany. He started to slowly bounce Peter in his arms as if he were a little baby, then whispered conspiratorially into the boy’s ear.

“Well, how do you s'pose he got there, Pete?”

Peter sniffled, and Tony grimaced in disgust when he felt Peter rub his face along his nice shirt, probably smearing his snot all over the place. “I-I think he came through my window.”

Tony hummed thoughtfully and jutted his head to the side as he locked eyes with Pepper, hoping it was enough for her to get the message to follow him as he made his way down the hall to Peter's room.

“Oh,” Tony tried his best at surprised, but it almost came out as a wobbly, slurred burp before he coughed quickly and pressed it down, and he made extra effort not to wobble on his feet as he walked. “Hm, so he can fly then? Or is he that good at scaling tall buildings?”

Tony and Pepper continue down the hall and Peter nods his head vigorously against Tony's shoulder. His tears had stopped, and his breathing had calmed down as he pressed himself closer to the man. Tony swears he’s going to feel the indent of Peter’s nose pressing into the side of his neck for the rest of the night.

“Y-yeah, he can fly, and he-he can blast stuff. He's like-he’s like Evil Iron Man except tons more scary!”

Tony scoffed playfully, clapping Peter on the leg. “Scarier than Iron Man?! That's just not allowed.” He felt proud of himself when he heard Peter giggle adorably in his arms. He lifts his head slightly to watch as Tony leads them down the hall.

Then the three of them stop in front of Peter's closed door, and Peter hides his face in Tony's shoulder again.

“Hey, Pete. Is it a robot like at the Expo?” Tony finds himself asking, already dreading the answer. Peter nods against him, and Tony swallows around the lump in his throat when the ugly guilt rears its head once again. He had known what the answer was based off the eerie description Peter had rambled about before admitting what had stowed itself away in his closet. He had been hoping to avoid the question entirely… but he had just needed to know.

“Alright, easy enough for Iron Man, right?” He forces a grin. “I beat ‘em once and I can beat ‘em again.”

Tony bent down in an attempt to place Peter's feet on the ground, but a low, petulant whine emits from the kid’s throat and his legs almost instantly fly up to wrap tightly around Tony's waist so they wouldn't touch the floor.

“No,” he whimpered, scrambling against Tony's shoulder to get a better grip on his shirt to cling tighter. “Nonono.”

“Hey, it's alright Pete. You gotta stay out here with Pepper while I go beat up this HammerBot, kay? I can't let him get away with messing with my best kid, can I?”

Peter is obviously reluctant to let go of him, but when Tony stands back up and hands him over to Pepper, the boy unwinds his arms from Tony's neck and grabs eagerly for Pepper. Pepper grabs Peter and wraps him quickly in her arms as Tony slowly retracts his grip. Peter nuzzles against her, peaking out to watch Tony worriedly while the man opened the door to his room.

Tony shoots Pepper another tired wink before silently slipping into the room. She simply rolled her eyes in response and uses her free hand to rub Peter's back comfortingly while he hides his face in her shoulder, fingering the ends of her hair with his small hands.

Pepper and Peter didn’t have to stand there very long before Tony was back. It had been no more than 15 seconds or so before his head was peeking out from the door.

“Pete? I don't see him. I think you might’ve scared him off.”

Peter looked up from Pepper's shoulder and rubbed at his eyes again before looking at Tony with a confused twitch to his brow. A pout forms and he juts out his lower lip as he reaches silently for the man with outstretched arms. Tony happily obliges and hefts the small boy onto his hip, pushing the bedroom door open to reveal the empty room to him.

Peter silently points to the closet across the room, and his other hand fists Tony's shirt collar in his hand, pulling himself closer with his tiny nose pressed into Tony’s cheek.

Tony walks across the room and opens the closet door to reveal no robot... A thoughtful hum emits from his throat and he pats Peter's leg reassuringly when he turns to place the boy on his bed with little struggle.

“I don't know kiddo. Maybe it was just in your dreams.” Tony finally admitted, pulling the covers back and helping the scrambling boy cover up.

“No, no!” Peter insisted, “I saw him! He was there, I promise!”

Tony hums thoughtfully again and taps his chin exaggeratedly as he looks down at the little boy he is cocooning in a mass of blankets.

“Well, how about this?” Tony proposes, “if JARVIS sees any HammerBots hovering outside your window, or coming into your room, then he'll tell me. Then, I'll come running and blast them out of here, all the way to Timbuktu. Deal?”

Peter stares up at him with a starry-eyed look on his face and he reaches up to place a tiny hand on Tony's cheek tentatively.

“You're so awesome Mr. Stark, sir.”

Tony didn't know what came over him, or what inclined him to do what he did. But, still, he smiled down at him, grabbed onto Peter's tiny wrist, and turned his head to press a chaste kiss to the palm of the boy's hand.

Peter grinned widely and happily snuggled down into the blankets. Then, Tony seemed to remember the weren’t alone and spared a glance to the side and glanced shyly at Pepper, who was quietly observing the entire exchange with a soft smile. Tony already knew that this definitely wasn’t going to help prove the point he was trying to make… both she and Peter had just caught him off guard. So, with a quiet sigh, Tony looked back at Peter before slowly starting to stand from his seat on the edge of the bed.

Just as he was about to move away from the bed, Peter's eyes snapped open and his hand flew out to grab onto Tony's jeans before he could walk away.

“Wait, Mr. Stark! What if the robot can turn invisible? What if he's still in here but we just can’t see him?”

Tony looks over his shoulder at him, and an amused grin quirks up at the sides of his mouth. The more he spent time with this kid the more he wanted to keep him, and the more he was allowing his selfish desires to cloud his better judgement. “I wouldn't worry buddy. I don't think-”

“Would you feel better if Mr. Stark stayed here with you until you went to sleep?” Pepper stepped in, moving so she was close enough to comb a gentle hand through Peter's curls. Tony whipped his head to the side so he could stare at her with an incredulous glare, because he most definitely knew what she was doing. She definitely wasn’t helping him in his controlling his wants for the greater good. She’s an enabler is what she was.

Peter nodded shyly, burrowing beneath the covers so only his pleading eyes were peeking out, still grasping onto Tony's jeans in a tiny fist. And it's not like Tony could say no to him. He owed this boy the world for what he did to his family…

So, with an exaggerated sigh with the sole purpose of telling Pepper he was displeased with her, he reluctantly climbed onto the bed, ushering the boy to scoot over so he could have some room. Peter eagerly made room for him, smiling happily as he did so, and Tony settled nicely on the mattress, bracing his back against the tall headboard.

Pepper smirked knowingly at him, and Tony fixed her with a playful glare as Peter rolled over and wiggled closer to him, throwing a tiny arm over his leg and hugging the limb closely as if it were his own personal body pillow.

The kid sure was a cuddly one.

“You smell lots like Ms. Harrison,” Peter mused offhandedly, situating himself. Both Tony and Pepper paused, and Tony’s lighthearted smile turned down into a frown. It made his chest hurt and throb and he had the sudden urge to jump out of the bed and run down to his lab to drink and drink until there was no more for him to down… but that wasn’t right. That wasn’t what Peter needed him to do.

“I know,” Tony swallowed thickly, dropping his hand tentatively to pat his head, “but I promise I’ll try not to from now on.”

Peter didn’t seem at all worried. He just hummed and smiled.

Tony glanced over at Pepper too, and she didn’t seem all that worried either. She smiled proudly at him and shuffled over, leaning over his form to smooth Peter's hair off his forehead to press a tender kiss there. “Goodnight Peter. Mr. Stark will make sure that mean robot doesn't come back to hurt you ever again.”

Peter smiled up at her, cracking his eyes open slightly to look at her. “Night-night Ms. Pepper.”

Pepper straightened back up slightly, smiling at the boy as his eyes closed again, before turning her gaze to slowly meet Tony's. She braced a hand on his knee and looked at him shyly. He'd been staring at her with that expression again… regretful and longing, and she wasn’t sure how to deal with it.

She sighed to herself and placed a steady hand on his chest as she leaned forward to press a tender kiss to the side of his head, right next to his ear. Tony's eyes closed slowly at the serenity of the moment and Pepper lingered there, resting her forehead against the side of his.

“I don't know how you thought you weren't good for him,” she whispered allowing her soft breaths to brush along the side of his face enticingly. “You have no idea how proud I am of you.” She lifted her other hand to stroke his other cheek and Tony lifted his own to grasp her small hand in his.

She moved away to smile fondly at him, and Tony tilted his own head to look up at her. No words were spoken between them, but Tony lifted their hands to his mouth so he could press a soft kiss to her knuckles before placing her hand back on his cheek pointedly. His own hand dropping to rest on top of Peter's head again, slipping his fingers between his soft curls. All while never averting his attentive eyes from her.

She stroked her thumb right above his cheekbone, lovingly, then leaned down to press a quick kiss to his lips. She couldn't hold the urge back any longer. She pulled away quickly, a slight blush creeping up her neck and Tony grinned at her.

“I'll see you two tomorrow. Rhodey says he'll be dropping by at some point too,” she pauses, as if contemplating her next words. “Will that be all Mr. Stark?”

Tony's grin slowly morphs into a loving smile as he watches Pepper slowly begin to retreat from the room.

“That'll be all Ms. Potts,” he whispers.

***

“So, is that my new nephew?” Rhodey asks, wearing a large grin on his face while he collapses on the sofa next to Tony. The man was scrolling and messing with some blueprints on his tablet as Peter went to town on some Legos Tony had sent Happy for earlier in the morning. The boy was still going strong at two hours.

“No,” Tony responded almost immediately, not even jumping at Rhodey’s sudden appearance, “he's not my son.”

Rhodey scoffed at him. “You adopted him Tony. That means you’re basically his dad.”

“No, I didn't adopt him,” Tony argues. “I'm just fostering him until the state finds a nice family that I approve of. And, meanwhile, he's gonna help me get my company back on track.” He lifts his head to settle Rhodey with an annoyed glare. “He's not my son.”

Tony watched a series of emotions pass over his best friend's face before turning to check on Peter. Just to make sure he was still busy with the enormous brick set and not interested in listening in on their adult conversation. The last thing he needed was for another sobbing fit because he thought Tony didn’t love him.

“Please tell me you aren't just using this kid Tones,” Rhodey pleaded, settling on an expression screaming: DISAPPOINTMENT!!! Tony couldn't really blame him. Heck, he was probably the person most disappointed in himself.

“No,” Tony gritted out, “I'm just killing two birds with one stone. The press likes him, and the kid needs a better home. It's a win-win.” He wasn’t about to give Rhodey the satisfaction of knowing he was practically a lovesick puppy when it came to this kid.

“Oh, c'mon Tones,” Rhodey sighed, a small, amused smile growing on his face. “I already know how much you love this kid. Pepper would tell me and Coulson all about your daily rants after you met the kid. You don't have to act all tough around me, man. I already know all about your secret soft side.” Rhodey nudged his shoulder against Tony’s with a wide grin splitting across his face.

“Whatever,” Tony muttered.

He'd had a long night, and he definitely wasn't exactly in the best of moods. After Peter had gone to sleep, he had slipped out of the bed and disappeared down to his lab to fall back into his usual routine of guilt and self-hatred, completely draining another bottle of Whiskey he had abandoned on his workshop table earlier in the week even though he had promised Peter he wouldn’t. Come morning, Peter was awake, and Tony'd rather be anything but. The kid was a ridiculously early riser and Tony had to suck it up and pull himself out of bed to get the kid breakfast and keep him entertained, keeping a good distance so Peter wouldn’t be able to smell the distinct scent of alcohol still lingering on his clothes. So, he ordered in some pancakes from iHop, they ate, and he plopped Peter right in front of the TV while he sent Happy out on an early-morning toy run. He dealt with the pounding headache, which was not at all helped by the obnoxious SpongeBob laugh blaring through the speakers every ten seconds, followed by the distinct high-pitched one emitting from the kid lounging on a mass of pillows in front of the screen.

Thankfully, he had two hours of peace and quiet, with only the occasional sound of Legos clattering together, before Rhodey showed. Rhodey would have surely slapped him upside the head for being a cranky prick to him first thing in the morning. More so than he was already being.

Rhodey turned to look at the adorably oblivious kid again, who hadn’t even noticed the man’s arrival.

“Hey buddy,” Rhodey spoke up softly, garnering the kid's attention, “how're you?”

Peter's head snapped up to stare at the two men on the couch. He slowly soaked in the face of the man sitting next to Tony and his mouth fell agape once the pieces in his brain clicked together and he finally recognized him.

“WAR MACHINE?!?!” He shrieked, stumbling over himself in his hurry to reach the man. Tony winced at the loud shout reverberating in his ears.

“Yep,” Rhodey grinned, never taking his eyes off the kid while he scrambled onto the couch next to Tony and quickly hobbled over to settle himself in the man's lap as if it were the most normal thing in the world. Tony seemed indifferent to the boy and simply moved his tablet and arm more to the left as he continued to mess around with the prints on the screen, completely giving up on steering clear from the kid until he showered and just hoped the excitement would blur any distinct smells on his clothes.

“Whoa,” Peter breathed excitedly, staring up at Rhodey with wide, eager eyes. He patted his hand on Tony's stomach distractedly to get the man's attention. “Mr. Stark, you didn't tell me War Machine was coming to visit us.”

Tony smiled softly but didn't break his gaze away from the tablet. He didn’t want to look at Rhodey’s face. “I wanted it to be a surprise.”

“Cool,” Peter breathed, bouncing excitedly.

“You can call me Uncle Rhodey,” Rhodey smiled, reaching up to pat down the kid's bedhead. Tony couldn't help but take note of everyone's fascination with the kid's crazy hair.

“R-really??”

Rhodey nodded. Peter's lip wobbled through his wide smile and soon he was throwing himself into Rhodey’s arms. It surprised him, but he wound his arm around Peter's back as his little boy arms wound around his neck. He turned his questioning gaze on Tony, who had looked up briefly when he felt the kid leave his lap in a hurry.

“He’s just a bit cuddly. You'll get used to it.”

Rhodey nodded and patted Peter's back absently and Tony turned back to his work.

“Hey, you want me to build stuff with you?” Rhodey offered eagerly, standing from the sofa with Peter safely tucked in his arms. The kid nodded vigorously and pointed to the spot on the carpet he had just recently vacated. There were tiny Legos scattered everywhere and Tony rolled his eyes at the mess.

He listened on for the next hour as Peter and Rhodey chatted on the carpet, eager to get to know each other. He got a lot of work done that way too, and by that time his headache was mostly gone, and he could enjoy the company a bit more. He put the tablet to the side and looked down at the progress they were making on the large building set Happy had brought back.

Then he finally got a good whiff of himself, immediately cringing at the unattractive stench, wondering how in the world Peter and Rhodey were able to miss it. He deemed it safe to leave Peter with Rhodey and stood from the couch.

“I'll be right back. I'm gonna go freshen up.”

***

When he returned to the penthouse Living Room, the two were still going at it in the same spot he had left them, so he decided to join in on the fun. He picked up a few random pieces and began sticking them together, trying to build something completely irrelevant to what was on the box, much to Peter's frustration.

Peter would continue grabbing for the pieces he needed that Tony kept stealing with a knowing grin, insisting that “ _you aren't doing it right, Mr. Stark. We're building this. See?_ ” He would hold up the box and point to the plane-like contraption displayed on the front. Tony would simply nod his head and apologize innocently before grabbing another piece from the pile as soon as Peter took one of his.

He found the kid's frustration beyond hysterical as he desperately tried to explain to the man that he was doing it all _wrong._

“Tony stop teasing your kid,” Rhodey instructed, flicking his ear. Tony yelped in surprise and turned to glare at the man, dropping the piece Peter had been fruitlessly trying to pry out of his fisted hand. Peter immediately dove for the piece and began giggling manically as he attached it to the wing of his plane.

Tony started behaving after that, and he did his best to play nice by helping Peter search through the pile for which pieces he needed.

Soon enough, they finished the place, and by then both men were ready to get up off the floor and stretch their aching backs. But Peter simply dove for the next box and tore it open, much to their dismay.

Thankfully, Pepper showed up before he started insisting for the little baggies of pieces to be opened for him. He jumped up excitedly from the floor, completely abandoning the Legos to ambush the woman with a big hug.

“Wow, he really is cuddly, isn't he?” Rhodey chuckled while he helped pull Tony off the floor.

“Yeah he is,” Tony muttered, following Peter’s lead to greet Pepper as well. Pepper was happily giving Peter a big hug, smiling widely as she listened to Peter ramble on about his new Lego sets and completely tattling on Tony for his annoying mischief.

“Way to throw me under the bus, kid,” Tony laughed when he heard it.

Peter giggled, and Pepper smiled up at him from where she was crouched on the floor. He noticed the look in her eyes and knew she wanted to talk. About what? He didn't know. He hoped it was about… _them_ , and not some boring business stuff that typically overruled the more important things is his opinion… but Pepper never saw it that way.

“Hey, Petey, why don't you go build more Legos with Rhodey? I need to talk to Mr. Stark for a minute.”

The boy nodded happily and skipped over to Rhodey, grabbing onto the man's hand, leading him back to the Living Room. Pepper lead Tony further from the room. She ushered him into his home office and closed the door behind them with a frazzled look.

“How do you plan we play on this Tony?”

He blinked for a moment, then dove right in with a growing smirk on his face. “Well I was thinking maybe dinner and a movie first…”

“Yeah, okay, I think we can work with that,” Pepper muttered to herself, tapping her chin with the end of her pen.

“And then… maybe come back here and… I don't know, kanoodle it up a bit.” He offered her a suggestive grin, and she stared at him blankly for a moment. Slowly trying to process his suggestion with just a twinge of confusion in her expression. Then, it quickly morphed into disgust when she realized what he was talking about. She rolled her eyes and scowled at him as she usually did when he suggested something of the like, but Tony didn’t understand why she was so surprised by it.

“Tony! No! I was talking about the press with you and Peter! What's your plan for that? Carl says we need to start getting on top of this.”

It was Tony's turn to blink and stare at her with confusion muddling his features.

“Oh,” he cleared his throat and pressed a hand to his forehead. He wasn’t embarrassed… well, he was, but he wasn’t about to let Pepper know that… and really, there was nothing to be embarrassed about. It was just an innocent misunderstanding. “Um, well… what's the most loved fan theory circling around right now?”

“People think this is just a PR stunt.” Pepper answered quickly, brushing off Tony’s earlier insinuations with a practiced ease and professionality.

“Well, they aren't exactly wrong,” Tony muttered under his breath. “Let's release a ‘leak’ telling where we'll be having dinner. I'll have Peter with me, make it look like it was planned to be without cameras… that'll get them wondering. Then in a few days we can announce the fostering thing and go from there.”

Pepper nodded in agreement and pulled out her BlackBerry.

“Sounds like a plan. I'll talk to Carl and Agent Coulson about this and get the ball rolling. Fury is willing to help up your image.”

Then, with the phone pressed to her ear, she left the room.

Tony stood there, watching the door she left through with a defeated frown.

He supposed he should probably figure out what Peter would like to eat...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoyed this. I'm super sorry that this took forever, but, you know... life got to me lol.  
> So, yeah. You guys have been such big supporters, thank you so much!! I didn't think so many people would enjoy it. And I know I'm sorta veering away from the Annie AU thing, but I want to keep it at least a little original. The entire premise and plot IS based off of the newer movie rather than the older one though, cuz I feel it fits better to the characters... so yeah. I hope you enjoyed it.
> 
> I promise, future chapters won't be so sad :( because I'm just not into that. Happy chapters will follow! :) 
> 
> So, thanks for reading and commenting, it means the absolute world to me!! XD


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I sorta rushed through this... sorry if it's not up to par lol.

Peter was definitely a hardcore trooper. Even Tony was mildly impressed with the way he was able to handle himself in front of the cameras at such a young age. Of course, the kid always complained exaggeratedly about it with a deep throated whine when they got in the car of arrived back at the Tower, but in public, he was the picture-perfect golden child, and Carl couldn't have been happier. He constantly praised Tony on his fine ‘pick’.

They kept the secret for a few days, making a few appearances here and there at a nice restaurant or kiddie movie with Peter attached at the hip. It was funny to read the ludicrous theories people came up with regarding him and Peter, though some were just a bit bothersome. Nothing he wasn’t used to… he was more worried about how it would affect Peter in the future.

So, a week later, Carl and the PR team released an official statement about Tony Stark’s guardianship over the child, and it didn’t take any longer than a couple hours before the news of Stark’s new foster son literally blew up the internet. Peter’s adorable, smiley pictures were plastered across every news outlet, usually accompanied by a smiling Tony or Pepper holding his hand. Which led to even more speculation regarding the extent of his and Pepper’s relationship. She wasn’t all that happy about that one.

And, like it always was, controlling the images and stories of the three of them proved to be a bit of a challenge for the PR folk. They fought tooth and nail, day, and night, to make sure there were no speculative articles being released that in some way could reveal their true intention. Tony had little to do with that part of wrangling the press, but he made it clear that nothing bad should be said about either Peter or Pepper, and the PR team happily obliged. It turned out that they had nothing to worry about on the Peter front. Everyone loved him and his smiling face.

And even though Peter seemed to quickly grow used to the alarming number of cameras being pushed into his face every time he stepped outside; Tony always felt a deep-seated guilt in his gut from forcing this type of life onto such a young, impressionable kid. It was needed though. Having Peter around made the company's stock numbers skyrocket, and he was almost positive Carl was having a rarely experienced happy-high, because he very rarely came across as so excited while proposing another appearance for the adorable foster family.

“Imagine this,” Carl grinned eagerly, “a dog? People have it soft for dogs, sometimes more so than children. So, just imagine having both-”

“No,” Tony interrupted quickly, nipping that particular venture right in the butt. He didn’t need some slobbery animal roaming around his home while he was busy working. Who knows what kind of mess it would create? Having Peter to take care of was hard enough as it was. And poor JARVIS was having a time wrangling just the two of them, imagine a _dog_ being put into the mix. No thank you.

“Mr. Stark, just think-”

“Carl! Seriously?! I’m barely a functioning adult myself, and I already have a kid I’m desperately struggling to keep up with. Do you really think I’m fit to take care of a dog?”

Tony hated PR meetings. They were the worst… right after meetings with the board. It always seemed they were ganging up on him. Lecturing him over and over about how not okay it was to run naked through a park after a drunken venture. He received enough of that from Pepper as is. Of course, this time was different, but it still left the same feeling.

“We can hire someone to take care of it for you Mr. Stark,” another lady spoke up, “it is purely for appearances. You’d only have to take him on a walk once with Peter and that would just about be the extent of it.”

Tony could feel his face heating up in anger. These idiots weren’t listening to him! He said no, so that means no.

He took a quick glance outside, through the glass partitions separating the meeting room from the rest of the busy floor of employees, and there sat Peter, leaning his back against the glass, coloring in the new coloring book Happy brought up for him.

“I told you I wasn’t hiring a nanny for the kid, so even if I were to get a dog, it would be on my terms and _I_ would be the one taking care of it.” Tony didn’t want to talk about it anymore.

“Think of what’s best for your company Mr. Stark-”

“No! I already told you no. Stocks have skyrocketed already because of that kid out there. I’m already struggling to keep things under control at home, I don’t need to add a slobbery animal to the mess. The kid and I are fine as is.” Then, with those last words, he stormed out of the meeting room, leaving plenty of frustrated PR people in his wake, Carl included.

“You ready to go kid?” Tony grits out, throwing the door open and storming out the room, pausing outside the entrance to stand over the kid sitting on the floor. He felt bad for making him sit outside the whole time, but Pepper was in another meeting, Rhodes was out doing War Machine stuff and Happy wasn’t really… babysitter material as of yet.

“Just a sec Mr. Stark,” Peter answers, keeping his gaze hyper fixed on the page he was busily scribbling with a red crayon. His tongue stuck out of the side of his mouth as he concentrated, and Tony let a small smile slip past him as he waited patiently for the kid to finish up his oh so important coloring. His body was angled away weirdly, slumped over the book far enough that Tony wasn’t able to make out what he was working on without putting forth extreme effort.

“Done!” Peter grinned widely, reeling back quickly, and hugging the page to his chest to hide it from the genius hovering over him. He quickly gathered the crayons with one hand, struggling to fit them all into his tiny fist. So, Tony reached out a hand to take them for him as he scrambled to his feet.

“Great,” Tony smiled tightly, “you gonna show me what you were working on or what?”

Peter grinned mischievously and shook his head wildly, hugging the book even tighter. “It’s a surprise,” he whispered loudly.

“I see,” Tony answered, giving him a gentle push forward. By then, Peter knew where to go. The skip in his step picked up and he practically galloped all the way back to Tony’s office, never relinquishing his hold on the coloring book.

“Do you have to do any more meetings Mr. Stark?” Peter questioned when they were both safely stowed away in the office, escaping the chaos outside. He immediately raced over to the little spot that had been set up for him beside Tony’s desk.

“Not today kiddo.” Tony sighed in relief, running a hand over his face while muttering a quiet ‘thank god’ under his breath. “I do have a few more while you’re at school tomorrow though. That’s going to be _so_ boring.”

“Why do you have to do so many meetings?” Peter questioned curiously, wriggling around to make himself comfortable in the beanbag chair. He started to carefully tear out the page he was coloring on earlier, keeping it out of Tony’s line of sight expertly.

“Well, I wouldn’t usually cuz I’m not the CEO anymore, but since I’m the face of the company an all, people need to meet up with me to tell me what I need to do so that we can make more money.” He did his best to explain it in a way that Peter would understand, but he shouldn’t have worried, because Peter was the smartest of all smart kids. How could he forget?

Peter nodded his head contemplatively, a serious, understanding frown forming on his lips. “Oh,” he breathed, “so they’re the people who decide where the cameras follow us to?”

Tony chuckled at the simple reasoning the kid was able to concoct. “Pretty much.” He collapsed down on to the fancy, spinny chair sitting behind his desk.

A small silence fell over the two, and Tony quickly found himself growing restless without something to occupy his hands, but he promised Pepper he’d stick around for the day in case anything major were to come up. They were in the middle of campaigning a new product release and everyone was a bit on the edge of their seats with both nerves and excitement. Except for Tony… he couldn’t care less.

“Mr. Stark?” Peter piped up quietly. Tony snapped his head over to look down at the kid who was holding out a childishly folded piece of paper to him. “I made this for you. It’s the surprise.”

Tony’s eyes widened as he reached out to grab the paper. He felt some stinging behind his eyes, and he hadn’t even opened the paper yet. How pathetic was that? There was a lump in his throat too, and he really, really didn’t want to open the it in front of the kid. He was already having a difficult day, and he just knew that this ‘surprise’ from Peter was going to send him flying off the edge into a pit of tears. He didn’t need to start crying in front of a little boy just because he gave him a colored drawing. That’s pretty freaking pathetic.

He fingered the corner of the page nervously and Peter frowned at his apprehension. He scrambled out of his beanbag chair and rushed to stand at Tony’s side, assuming he needed assistance in unfolding the gift. His tiny hand reached up to cover Tony’s as he gently lifted the corner of the folded paper to reveal a poorly colored coloring page of Iron Man with his gauntlet out and ready to fire.

The colors were accurate, and it was obvious Peter tried very hard to make it right, even though there were several small scribbles outside the lines. That wasn’t the part that made Tony’s heart catch in his throat though. Nope… he’d seen plenty of poorly colored pages of his alter ego, but none of them were quite as personalized as Peter’s. Beside Iron Man stood a short stick figure with his stick arm reached up to attach to the Iron Man hand hanging at his side. A brown crayon had hurriedly swirled around the top of the circle head to represent curls, and a red crayon was used to draw up the wide smile the little stick boy was wearing.

“See,” Peter whispered, leaning into Tony’s personal space unknowingly so he could point out the various parts of the picture. “That’s you and that’s me.” He looked up at Tony and grinned widely. He was so proud of his picture.

“Yeah,” Tony rasped, refusing to tear his gaze away from the words written across the top, scribbled out in 7-year-old penmanship.

_‘Peter’s Hero’_

“Kid, you’re something else, you know that.” Tony whispered, releasing a humorless laugh as he settled his chin in his hand. He stared at the coloring page, a shaky smile edging across his face as his eyes glistened.

“I know Mr. Stark,” Peter grinned, “can I get a hug now?”

Tony rolled his eyes good-naturedly, but he pushed his chair back anyway to reach down and lift the small kid into his lap like it was second nature. It sorta was by then anyway. Even after just a week, Tony was already used to the affection and clinginess that came along with caring for Peter Parker. Peter didn’t stop grinning as Tony lifted him. He pressed himself into his usual position with his back to the man’s chest as he eagerly reached out to grasp the mouse of his computer, waving it around in hopes that something interesting would pop up.

Tony chuckled, wiping at his eyes as he wrapped his other steady arm around the kid’s waist to hold him in place. They’d already had too many close calls when he hadn’t, so he didn’t want to take any chances with the wriggly child.

“I’m starting to think your intentions aren’t as true as you claim them to be,” Tony smiled, pinching his side teasingly. Peter squealed and pushed at his large hand, giggling madly as he continued to wave the mouse around insistently. “Did you want me or is the computer your new best friend?”

Peter didn’t say a word, he just kept moving the mouse across the mouse pad frantically, grinning giddily.

“Alright alright,” Tony relented, covering the hand on his mouse with his own. “Want to play Minesweeper before Pepper comes and ruins the fun?”

“Yes please!”

***

“What're your thoughts on dinner kid?” Tony asked, using the rearview mirror to glance back at the kid in the booster seat happily playing with the Iron Man action figure Tony had bought him early in the week. He carried that toy with him everywhere he went, which most definitely help Tony’s ego.

“Can we go home? I don't wanna see the cameras.” Tony didn't blame the kid. He didn't even know how a shy kid like Peter was able to grin so widely in every picture taken if him. Although, Peter was seeming to prove more and more, how _not_ shy he could actually be. Heck, Tony nearly had a heart attack a few days ago when he saw Peter talking to a hobo on a park bench across the playground instead of climbing on the jungle gym like the rest of the children.

“Sure thing. Pizza? Chinese? Take your pick.”

“McDonalds!” Peter shouts giddily, throwing his hands in the air and kicking his feet wildly, banging them against the car seat.

Tony rolls his eyes. They’ve gone through this nearly every night. He supposed he could give in to the request this one time, so he sighs good-naturedly and turns in the direction of the nearest McDonalds. Peter babbles and giggles excitedly when he notices that Tony was fulfilling his request.

The man pulls up to the drive thru with his window rolled down and runs a hand over his eyes tiredly as he glances at the menu. It'd been so long since he'd been to the place, he forgot what was good. He had always preferred Burger King.

“Welcome to McDonalds. Are you ready to order?” A voice spoke over the speaker, sounding bored and oh so done with life. Tony couldn't blame them. He was oh so done with his life too.

“Just give us a sec,” Tony answers, taking another quick glance into the backseat. “What do you want kid?”

“Happy meal please,” he squealed. “With-with the Iron Man toy.”

“You already have an Iron Man toy,” Tony reasoned softly, looking pointedly at the one grasped tightly in the kids hand.

“Yeah, but I want the McDonald's Iron Man toy. It shoots stuff out of the hand and everything!”

Tony sighs and rolls his neck loosely, so his head falls to the side, and he glances back over the menu.

“Alright, yeah. I'd like a Happy Meal, and make sure it comes with the Iron Man toy. And… give me a Big Mac with extra pickles.”

“Would you like something to drink with the Happy Meal sir?”

Tony frowns, but before he could answer, Peter's doing that very thing for him. “Chocolate milk!”

“Yeah, he'd like some chocolate milk with that.”

“Alright, your total is going to be $7.70. Please pull up to the next window.”

Tony went through the annoyingly lengthy process of waiting in the drive thru line. He ignored the starstruck teen boy who he had handled his card through the window. He had responded with a gaping mouth and stuttered breaths.

“You're- you're Iron Man!” He gasped as he shakily reached out to hand the card back to him.

“Yep!” Tony answered, snatching the card and pulling forward immediately. Not before Peter could be his charming self and wave goodbye with a pleasant ‘thank you’ to the teen through his own open window. Tony didn't even know when he had opened the window to begin with.

Peter was bouncing in his seat when they pulled up to the last window and he giggled happily when he saw the red box be handed through the window. He leaned forward, pushing against his seat belts, in an attempt to grab for it, but Tony didn't hand it back to him like he was hoping. Instead, the man placed it carefully in the passenger's seat and reached out to grab the brown bag holding his cheeseburger.

“You put the Iron Man toy in there, right?” Tony asked the lady at the drive thru.

“Of-of-of course Mr. Stark.” She stammered, glancing back at Peter bouncing in his seat. “And hello Peter. It's nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too!” Peter cried out joyfully, waving kindly as Tony peeled away from the window.

The genius honestly didn't know where the kid's shyness went sometimes. He could be a chatty Cathy one moment and a complete ‘head hiding in shoulder’ kid the next.

“Hey, Mr. Stark?” Peter questioned a minute or two later when they were back en route to the Tower. Tony lifted his head to listen to the question. “How did the nice lady know my name?”

“The same way the camera people know your name.” Tony answered simply, gritting his teeth in annoyance as he thought about it. He’d had this conversation with Peter before, and he hadn’t like it.

“Oh, okay,” Peter smiled, seemingly satisfied, and turning to look back out the window.

They drove back to the Tower without any more questions. Tony parked the car in the garage and grabbed the McDonalds bags before climbing out of the car and swinging open the backseat to help Peter out of his seatbelt even despite his insistence that he could do it himself.

They ate dinner together on the couch in the penthouse while they watched Back to the Future for a third time. Then, after Peter finished with his food, he set his two scarily dissimilar Iron Man figures on the coffee table where he had been instructed to eat over and climbed onto the couch after wiping his hands on his pants. And without fail, and without any shy apprehension, he plopped himself right onto Tony's lap. Not seeming to care that the man was still trying to eat his cheeseburger.

Then, just as usual, Peter fell asleep before the movie was even over. So, Tony picked him up and gently carried him to his room, already familiar with what the next few hours would bring them. He adjusted the comforter so Peter was fitted snugly beneath the blankets and he yawned tiredly.

He hadn't been sleeping, and for the first time in his life, it wasn't his fault.

It happened like clockwork, every night, without fail. It was expected of a grieving child, he knew that, but it didn't make it any easier.

So, he rushed off to bed as soon as Peter was settled and hoped he'd be able to catch a wink or two before his assistance was needed once again.

“Sir, Master Peter has awoken from a nightmare,” JARVIS announces into the dark room. Tony wants to cry… he wants to lay in his comfy bed and mourn over his lack of sleep for the rest of eternity.

He gets up anyway, because Peter needed him to be an adult and to stop being so selfish.

So, he went through the usual routine. He snuck into Peter's room, where the boy was curled tightly into a ball beneath the covers, sobbing into his knees. He climbed onto the bed and situated himself against the headboard before scooping up the child and cradling him to his chest, rocking him back and forth like a newborn infant.

“Shh, buddy, it's okay.”

Peter continues to cry, and Tony continues to rock. His head drops back heavily against the headboard and he closes his eyes, listening to the quiet whimpers emitting from the child in his arms.

He feels tiny fists contract around his nightshirt, and Peter pulls himself up from the baby-like hold so he can press his face into the man’s neck. His hand finds the collar of Tony’s shirt and he holds on tightly as he continues to cry.

“You’re okay buddy,” Tony whispers into his hair again. He flattens his hand across the boy’s back, pressing him closer to his chest. “I’m right here. Everything’s going to be okay. Just breathe for me, yeah?”

Peter’s able to suffer through a few more ragged breaths before he’s calming down.

“I-I-I-I just miss them,” he wails. Tony flinches at the bout of desperate sobs that follow the statement and he hushes him again.

“I know you do buddy. I know.”

He rocks his body from side to side and rubs circles into Peter’s back as he lets his other hand trail up to find itself in the kid’s messy hair.

“I wan’em back so bad! I-I-I take it back! I don’t wanna go see Iron Man! I want them back!”

***

Tony mutters frustratedly under his breath as he waits in the car pick up line in front of Peter’s new elementary school. The line trudges by incredibly slowly, like, it was the slowest he’d ever gone in a car, and it was driving him insane.

He was finally able to inch forward far enough to see the enormous number of kids sitting along rows of benches alongside the car pickup line. He spots Peter’s mop of curls almost instantly, sitting amongst a group of rowdy boys, looking downright depressed as he attempts to shrink back into himself.

It makes Tony’s mouth fall into a downwards scowl, pressing up closer to the bumper in front of him, hoping Peter would spot the flashy car so he could escape the uncomfortable group. He didn’t like it when Peter wasn’t smiling.

Thank goodness it didn’t take longer than a couple seconds before Peter’s eyes lit up after he spotted the car. He nearly tumbled headfirst into the concrete when he stood up, cradling his bulging zip-up hoodie and toddling awkwardly as he made his way to the car. His large Iron Man backpack was bouncing along behind him.

“Whatcha got there kid?” Tony questioned suspiciously as Peter carefully crawled into the backseat, keeping a protective arm wrapped securely under the bulge. Tony almost didn’t want to ask.

The backdoor closes behind him and once Peter gets situated in his seat, he turns his head up to look at the genius, showing off his ear-splitting grin, looking beyond proud of himself as he slowly unzips his hood.

It was a CAT!! _A CAT!!!_

“Peter!” Tony spluttered, staring right at the little grey kitten the kid was cradling to his chest. “Why do you have a cat?!”

“It’s a _baby_ cat Mr. Stark,” he corrects, “he’s a kitten.” He hugs the cat close to him, pressing his face into the probably flea-infested fur.

“No-no-no,” Tony chants, practically throwing himself into the backseat to grab the animal by the scruff of his neck, tearing it out of Peter’s grasp.

“Mr. Stark!” Peter cries as the kitten mewls in fear, reaching out desperately to save the kitten from the man’s grasp. “Stop it! You’re hurting him.”

“No Peter,” Tony responds firmly, grimacing as he drops the small animal into the passenger's seat. “You aren’t getting attached to him. We can’t keep it.”

“But-but-but,” Peter whimpers helplessly, staring at the mewling kitten in the front seat.

“No.” Tony finishes with a finality that couldn’t be argued with. Peter silences after that and avoids Tony’s harsh gaze by turning to look out the window. Tony pulls out of the car line, zooming forward and bypassing the waiting cars ahead of him.

When he chanced a glance into the rearview mirror it was at a red light. He was met with a soft, sad little boy staring longingly out the window while silent tears dripped down his cheeks. He sniffled too, and Tony grit his teeth together, turning back to the traffic in front of him.

“We’ll stop by the animal shelter on the way home.” He announced, accelerating once the light turned green.

“Sure Mr. Stark,” Peter answered lamely without breaking his gaze from the window.

A sour taste developed in Tony’s mouth when the kid didn’t put up as so much as a fight, but he wasn’t bringing an animal back to his home! He wasn’t doing it!

He was going to bring the cat to the shelter. He was going to do it… he was almost strong enough to do it. He was right there… right by the exit. All he had to do was merge the car into the leftmost lane, but the damn kid had made him soft. All he had to do was take a quick look at the napping kitten in the passenger seat and a quick glance at the crying little boy in his backseat and his mind was made up. He had even slowed down when he approached the exit… giving him plenty of time to change his mind, but he didn’t...

So, when he bypassed the exit, he groaned frustratedly as he threw his head back into the headrest and accelerated, weaving in between cars. It appeared he had a cat now.

“You’re so lucky you’re cute kid…”

Peter’s sniffling stopped abruptly, and he turned to look at the back of the man’s head, a hopeful glint gleaming in his eyes.

“Are we… are we keeping him?” Peter asked tentatively, his head angled downward but his eyes looking up pleadingly.

“Yeah,” Tony grumbled.

“Yay!” Peter celebrated, wriggling excitedly in his seat. Then, just like that, Tony’s happy little boy was back.

Then again, a cat was probably the perfect solution. They practically take care of themselves, they don’t slobber, and they don’t bark. Not to mention he’s pretty sure Pepper had always wanted a cat, so that would definitely win him some points with her. Then Carl too would be beyond ecstatic and well… it made Peter happy.

***

“What’s his name?” Happy questioned, raising a brow when he saw the small kitten cradled against the little boy’s chest. Tony turned down to look at Peter, but the boy shrugged helplessly.

“I don’t know what his name is,” he replied with big innocent eyes.

Tony paused as an idea hit him. A small smirk grew at the corner of his mouth and he turned to look up at Happy with a glowing grin.

“His name should be Oppenheimer,” he answered coolly, glancing down at the kid for his approval.

Peter’s brow was furrowed as he attempted the mumble the name correctly. “Open-oppi-oppin… Can I just call him Opie for short?”

Tony laughed outright and ruffled the kid’s hair. “Sure kid.”

Happy rolled his eyes at him, marching to the elevator to head out and grab the various cat necessities Tony had instructed him to fetch after they got home. He mumbled incoherently about ‘ _how in the world am I going to get Oppenheimer to fit on a bowl’._

The rest of the day went swimmingly. Peter did his homework at the dining table as Tony tinkered on the couch and Opie attacked his shoelaces. Later, Pepper came over for dinner, and both she and Peter spent an entire half hour cooing over the little grey kitten chasing the toy mouse Happy had brought back.

They watched a movie, as always, but Pepper joined them this time. And, like always, Peter made both himself and Opie comfortable in Tony’s lap. The man didn’t miss the way Pepper was looking at them, throwing all discretion to the wind as she took in the sight of the rare sight of a Domestic Tony Stark. Then, the movie ended, but Peter hadn’t fallen asleep. He was too busy petting Opie’s fur. He was obviously tired though, so it didn’t take much of a fight on Tony’s part to get him into bed.

Tony carried him and the cat to his room and tucked him under the covers. Peter hugged the kitten close and Opie didn’t seem to mind it one bit, purring loudly as Peter stroked his soft fur lovingly.

He didn’t know why he did it… but, overcome with the softness of the moment, Tony leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to the kid’s forehead, just like he remembered his mother and Jarvis doing to him when he was younger.

“Night kiddo,” he whispered, smoothing back the curls that had fallen in his face.

“Night-night,” Peter mumbled sleepily, a goofy grin spread across his face.

Tony smiled and slowly retreated from the room, heading back into the Living Room to say goodbye to Pepper before he went off to bed for himself. He hoped for a kiss, but didn’t receive one, and simply settled for an affectionate hug in return. He watched her leave then sighed to himself and went to bed.

Peter didn’t have any nightmares that night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Thank you so much for reading!


	8. Chapter 8

Opie quickly became quite the hit within the Stark household. Of course, it took Tony a while to adjust to having an animal roaming around his home, but Rhodey, Pepper, Happy, and, heck, even Coulson were absolutely enthralled with the kitten whenever they’d visit.

Tony definitely wasn’t a big fan of having his bare feet clawed and attacked first thing in the morning when he got out of his bed, because apparently that was part of the cat’s morning routine. He quickly learned to shut his bedroom door all the way while Opie was asleep in Peter’s room. Now, the menace just attacked Peter instead, and thankfully the kid seemed to find more amusement in it than Tony had.

His couches had seen better days as well, because according to Pepper cats liked to scratch stuff. He hadn’t known that and neither had Happy apparently… and now he had an enormous cat jungle gym tucked away into the corner of the room just so he wouldn’t have to buy new couches every week. Goodness, that cat was already becoming a spoiled brat.

Not to mention the enormous amount of convincing it took to teach Peter that allowing the cat to drink the milk out of his bowl of cereal while he was eating it was unsanitary and not allowed.

_(‘But he’s so thirsty Mr. Stark!’)_

So, now Opie has his own personal bowl of milk every morning to prevent such occurrences.

Even despite the adjustments Tony had to make, he couldn’t deny that the kitten was pretty stinkin’ cute. It took him a couple days to warm up to the cat, and he hadn’t realized it until the morning he caught himself grinning away as he let the kitten try to balance his front paws on his forearm to stick his tiny, furry face into his coffee cup curiously. Even despite the frazzling realization that he was already in love with the new addition he still laughed out loud when the cat’s head snapped up in surprise after getting a small taste of the hot, bitter liquid _(‘It’s nothing like your milk is it Opie?’)_. It took just about as long for him to accept the cat as it had taken him to accept Peter.

… He was going soft and he hated it.

The telltale signs were when he found himself hating the moment the cat cried pitifully after Peter left for school, because apparently cats could do that too. He caught himself a few times, slapping away that pitying look he directed towards the tiny animal while he sipped his morning coffee. But because he was a softie… he eventually gave in and went above and beyond to never hear the sad, lonely cries of Opie ever again, much like he did for Peter.

Which meant it didn’t become an uncommon occurrence for the cat to join him down in the shop or to board meetings on certain occasions. Sometimes he would just forget about him after dropping Peter off at school and JARVIS would have to remind him that Opie was busy mewling away upstairs while he was busy doing his work. The cat was definitely a cuddler and it didn’t take much longer than a few minutes for the lack of human interaction to get to the kitten before he was having a legitimate hissy fit. So, without even stopping to think of how much of a pushover he had become (for a cat for goodness sake!), he’d scoop up the ball of fur and head back down to work. Opie would curl up in his lap, his purrs vibrating through his thigh as he tinkered with one of his gauntlets as he quietly spewed affectionate insults and grumblings directed to him, and the kitten couldn’t even care less. He seemed to enjoy the company just as much as Tony seemed to, which, ironically, was quite a lot.

He remembered the day after Peter brought Opie home Carl had shown up at the penthouse sometime after business hours ended, because apparently Pepper had tattled on him during the day and he was insisting that Tony take a picture of Peter and his new cat so they could post it to his Twitter. So, he did, because it really wasn’t such a bad idea and no harm could really come of it.

He told Peter to pose with Opie and the kid had happily obliged as Tony held up his phone to snap the picture. The boy sat on the couch, grinning widely while holding the kitten close so he could press his cheek into the soft fur. Of course, Peter had insisted on seeing it after it was all said and done, wiggling on the couch, and tugging at his sleeve until he relented and showed the boy the adorable picture of him and Opie. Then, because he was at least somewhat of a decent human being, he asked the kid’s permission to post it on his Twitter, and Peter had nodded, forcing a smile onto his face as he went back to playing on his tablet.

So, Tony had posted it, with a caption written by his PR team (Carl) reading: _Just got my boy a new friend. We love Oppenheimer (Opie) already #welcometothefamily._ It didn’t take more than a couple minutes before the post went viral, just like any other picture of Peter. The boy was an internet sensation and even though he didn’t know it, he had them eating right out of his hand.

All in all, Oppenheimer was an official part of the Parker-Stark Family and it’d only been a few days, but Tony was already kind of attached. He was glad they found Opie instead of a dog… he’d never known it about himself, but he was most definitely a cat person through and through.

***

Peter loved his new school. He’d already made two whole new friends, and they had so much fun together all the time. Ned would never stop talking, and MJ just liked to tease him and role her eyes a lot when he and Ned talked about cool stuff like robots and Star Wars. At first, he wasn’t so sure if that had meant she didn’t like them or if she did. It was confusing so he asked Mr. Stark about it, but when he did ask the man just winked and told him that MJ probably just liked him. Peter thought that was good, because he liked her too, so he asked her to be his and Ned’s friend and she said yes. That was last week, and things were great. She still teased them a bit, but Peter knew it wasn’t the mean kind of teasing the other kids would do at his old school.

He loved all the things he was learning too. He learned so much with Mr. Stark down in the lab but learning stuff at school was a lot of fun too. It was a lot better than his old school. It was great, and even all his teachers liked him. They let him ask questions whenever he wanted as long as he raised his hand, and his classmates didn’t get mad when he did. It was great!

The only problem he seemed to have were all the kids talking _about_ him instead of to him. They’d point at him and whisper during lunch or when they were walking down the halls. Sometimes they’d get brave and approach him, asking questions about Mr. Stark and him, but it made him nervous to talk to them, because some of them were kinda mean about it. They weren’t super-duper mean, but… they weren’t all too nice either. He asked Mr. Stark about the staring and whispering while he was working on homework in the workshop instead of the office, and Mr. Stark had just sighed with a tired smile while he worked on repairing Dum-E a few tables down.

_“Just ignore them kid. They’re not worth your time anyway. All you need are a couple good friends and you’ll make it through.”_

Peter hadn’t found the advice extremely helpful, but he went along as if he understood anyways.

He wanted to be friends with _everyone_ , because he never wanted to be without friends ever again. It was hard at his old school because nobody was nice to him and they were all super mean, but the kids at this school were kind of cool. He liked them even though they were kinda rude when they asked questions and whispered about him behind his back. So, he didn’t quite understand why Mr. Stark would tell him to ignore all the kids and teachers asking him questions. He was kind of looking for advice on how to talk to them and make them his friends, but he supposed that that was why Mr. Stark didn’t have many friends of his own.

So, he had asked Ms. Pepper the same question, and she had done the same thing as Mr. Stark. She sighed tiredly and forced a soft smile onto her face while she served him his grilled cheese sandwich after school one day.

_“They’re just curious Peter. You can answer their questions if you want and maybe you’ll even make a friend. I know this is all new to you, and I’m sorry that all this attention is forced onto you. If it’s too much, then I’m sure Tony wouldn’t mind homeschooling you.”_

Peter had immediately said no, insisting that he loved his new school and his new friends immensely.

Though, the advice had almost been the opposite of Mr. Stark’s, and he wasn’t sure who to trust. Neither Mr. Stark nor Ms. Pepper had many friends as far as he could tell. Maybe he should just ask Uncle Rhodey when he came for a visit. He had lots of friends based on the awesome stories he’d come back with after a week of army adventures.

So, he just kept going back to school and started to answer kids’ questions to be nice. He found himself sitting at one of the popular tables with the loud kids one day, but they wouldn’t let Ned or MJ sit with them, so he didn’t sit with the popular kids again. He didn’t like not being able to sit with his real friends. Then, sometimes, the boys would crowd around him after school at the car line, asking a bunch of questions and laughing about burps and farts. Peter wasn’t a huge fan of them either, but he did his best to smile and laugh because he didn’t want to be mean.

He didn’t want to risk having everyone at school hate him again. He really, really loved his new school and he didn’t want to ruin it.

A couple days after he had found Opie in the bushes, he got _a lot_ more questions about Mr. Stark and whether or not he was going to be adopted by Iron Man based on what he had said about the picture on Twitter. Peter had known better of course, because he had seen Mr. Carl snatch up Mr. Stark’s phone to type out the words even despite Mr. Stark’s grumbling about the cheesiness afterwards. He knew Mr. Stark would have changed it if he could, but Mr. Carl had already posted it.

It was very obvious that Mr. Stark didn’t want people thinking he cared a whole super lot even though he did, so he’d just answered their questions with a ‘nope’ and shake of his head, hoping Mr. Stark would think he was doing a good job. He hoped that he could be as good at answering questions as Mr. Stark one day.

It had gotten pretty bad one day. There was this one popular boy named Flash that was constantly asking him question after question about Iron Man. He was pushy and rude, and Peter definitely wasn’t a fan of him, especially after he had called Ned ‘fat’ and MJ ‘weird’. But Peter was still nice to him, albeit a bit nervous, because he was a popular kid. If Flash didn’t like him, then he’d probably tell everyone else not to like him too… and that didn’t sound like a good thing.

“C’mon Peter, I’m your friend, right?” Flash hounded during lunch, leaning close to Peter with a pushy frown and a tight grip on his bicep. “Friends are supposed to invite each other over to their houses.”

“It’s not my house,” Peter argued helplessly, eyes widening nervously, “it’s Mr. Stark’s and I don’t know if he’d like me having friends over. I-It wouldn’t be much fun either, because I have to do homework in his office as soon as I get home or else we can’t watch movies.”

“Well, we can do the homework together!” Flash persisted, a growing grin on his face as his grip tightened. “And then we can watch a movie together too!”

“I-I-I don’t think so Flash. It’s not a good idea.” Peter whispered, pushing at the grapes Pepper had packed for part of his lunch. They were those awesome cotton-candy grapes he loved, but for some reason he couldn’t seem to stomach them at the moment.

“You’re a bad friend Peter,” Flash seethed, looking angry as he ripped himself away from Peter.

“What?” Peter looked helpless as he fought to find a way to not hurt Flash’s feelings. He didn’t mean to hurt his feelings… he really didn’t. “I’m-I’m sorry Flash. I just don’t think Mr. Stark would want another kid in his office.”

“What? You think your special Peter?” Flash glared, “or are you scared for me to know the truth?”

“Wha-what truth?”

“Leave him alone Flash,” Ned finally stepped in, looking very angry as he stood from his chair to glare at the bully towering over Peter.

“Shut up Fatso,” Flash snapped at him, “Peter’s been lying to everyone.”

“No-no I haven’t,” Peter protested helplessly.

“You have and you know it,” Flash said, jabbing an accusing finger into his chest, “Tony Stark doesn’t care about you. Everyone knows this is just a PR stunt. That’s what my Dad said last night when he saw you two eating at that fancy restaurant on the news. He said that Tony Stark is just using you to make more money for his company since it’s been doing so bad. It’s _so_ obvious. You just don’t want me to come over because you’re afraid I’ll see how much Iron Man ignores you and how much he doesn’t care.”

Peter’s face brightened in anger. He stood from his chair angrily, glaring at Flash with tears welling in his eyes. A chord had definitely been struck. Flash seemed to know how to hit where it hurt the most, because that’s something that had been worrying Peter ever since the beginning. He was quick to deny it though, using the same reasoning he used on himself every time he and Mr. Stark would step outside together. “He does care! He said so! He’s my best friend!”

“Oh really,” Flash leered with amusement glinting in his eyes. “Then why didn’t he say so at his last press conference? Why isn’t he adopting you? Why does he only spend time with you outside the Tower when there are cameras watching?”

Peter’s fists clenched together at his sides, hands shaking angrily as he glared at the bully. “You don’t know anything Flash,” he jabbed, “you’re just a dumb kid.”

“My _Dad_ said so,” Flash argued petulantly.

“Then you’re Dad’s dumb too!” Peter shouted, jumping to his feet, which drew the attention of one of the lunchroom monitors. “Mr. Stark cares about me you-you-you meanie!”

Then Peter moved towards him and shoved the boy backwards. Flash fell to the floor and stared up at him with wide eyes, as if he couldn’t quite believe that Peter had pushed him.

Peter wasn’t expecting the fist either, but… it didn’t take long for Flash to react and for him to have a throbbing, bloody nose.

***

Tony got the call in the middle of a meeting with Pepper and the board. In fact, he was in the middle of presenting his latest design for a newly functioning surgical robot while Pepper occupied herself in the seat closest to him with Opie purring contentedly in her lap, because Tony was whipped and he couldn’t leave Opie alone all day to cry himself silly until he and Peter came home for the evening.

The older members of the board did not look at all pleased when Tony stopped what he was saying and snatched his phone out of his pocket, frowning down at the unfamiliar number. He answered it anyway, because he never got calls from people he didn’t know. Heck, he had the president on speed dial. He just hoped it wasn’t some dumb reporter that had gotten their hands on a leak or an old fling he had drunkenly shared his personal number with.

“This is Stark,” he answered coolly, winking at Pepper when she rolled her eyes at him in frustration. She never did like when he played games on his phone during a meeting, so he assumed answering the phone in the middle of a presentation was a lot worse.

“Mr. Stark,” a frazzled woman breathed out on the other end of the line. She sounded a bit out of breath, as if she couldn’t quite believe who she was speaking with.

“You’ve got ten seconds before I hang up. You better make it quick.” He didn’t have time for needy women calling him for a one-night frisk when he was working hard to prove himself to Pepper.

“Um-um-okay. I’m the secretary at Midtown Elementary, and there has been an altercation involving your son-er foster son a few minutes ago. He is injured and Principal Morita would like to speak with you, or another adult responsible for Peter, personally. Apparently, there are conflicting stories about the… fight.”

“Fight?!” Tony gawked. He wasn’t quite sure how to process it. “Peter got into a fight? He’s 7 for god’s sake.” He was already moving from the front of the room to his chair where he had draped his suit jacket. He grabbed it and pulled his arms into it with his phone smushed between his cheek and shoulder.

“Yes Mr. Stark. Peter shoved another boy after shouting at him and he became injured as a result of the other party retaliating.”

“Okay, I’m on my way.” Tony responded curtly, ending the call and grumbling under his breath as he shrugged the jacket the rest of the way onto his shoulders.

He glanced over when he noticed Pepper’s worried expressions and the confused stares he was receiving from the board members. _Everyone_ knew Peter.

“Pete got into a fight at school. I gotta go pick him up. You got Opie?”

Pepper nodded, hugging the little gray cat close to her chest, and Tony shot out the room.

He didn’t even know what to think as he zoomed down the streets of Manhattan, working his way to Midtown. Peter just wasn’t a violent kid, and he wasn’t at all volatile. He was quiet, passive, and a complete charmer around people. It made no sense for him to have gotten involved in a fight at school without being majorly provoked.

He found his worry quickly morphing into anger at the thought of what that other little bastard had said or done to provoke his precious kid into shouting at him and shoving him.

He even found a message on his phone when he parked the car in the Elementary school visitor parking. It was a message from Pepper saying it would most definitely not look good if he threatened and harassed a 7-year-old kid at the elementary school.

She knew him so well.

***

Peter wanted to cry. He desperately wanted to cry, but he wasn’t about to cry in front of Flash and give him the satisfaction. Both boys were sitting in the Principal's office and Flash was looking beyond smug as he lounged in his chair.

“Both of your father’s have been contacted, and we’re going to get to the bottom of this.” Morita said sternly, settling both boys with a serious gaze.

“He’s not my Dad,” Peter muttered under his breath. He could feel a pit of dread begin to form in his stomach as he thought back on the reasonable accusations Flash had shot at him in the cafeteria.

“Yeah, Iron Man’s not Peter’s Dad,” Flash jumped in, looking smugly at Peter, “and he is going to be so pissed when he found out that you pushed me Peter. Superheroes don’t do that.”

Peter sniffled, and he felt the tears welling in his eyes begin to sting and he had to bow his head to try and keep Mr. Morita or Flash from seeing them shining in his already red eyes. Flash was right. Superheroes didn’t do that. He could only imagine how upset Mr. Stark was going to be at him.

“Now hang on a minute Eugene,” Morita reprimanded softly, “you punched Peter. That cannot go unpunished.”

“He’s the one that started it!” Flash whined, “My Dad said that it’s okay to fight back when someone tries to hurt you.”

“I didn’t want to hurt you,” Peter muttered miserably, because he really didn’t. He was just _so_ angry because the things Flash was telling him felt _so_ true. “You just made me angry. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have pushed you.”

“Thank you for apologizing Peter,” Morita smiled, “that was very big of you, but that still doesn’t mean you can get away with what you did. You shouldn’t shout at other students, and you most definitely shouldn’t be shoving them just because they said something you didn’t like.”

“I understand sir,” Peter responded numbly. He deserved to be punished; he did. What he did to Flash was wrong. He wouldn’t even blame Mr. Stark if he tried sending him back to Ms. Harrison for what he did. His Uncle Ben always told him never to hurt _anyone_ unless they were hurting him. Though, he didn’t think hurting his feelings counted.

The nurse came in just a minute later and started fussing with his nose. Cleaning up the dried blood above his lips and holding ice to the purplish bruise already beginning to form.

Then, a few minutes later, Flash’s Dad burst into the room with an angry scowl directed right at Peter.

“What’s going on?” The man growled out, glaring at Peter, who was busy staring down at his lap while he held the ice pack to his swelling nose. Then he turned his gaze over to his son sitting next to the boy and his glare turned to Morita when he saw Flash’s faux pitiful expression.

“There was a small altercation between Mr. Parker and your son Eugene, Mr. Thompson” Morita addressed calmly, gesturing for the man to take a seat next to his son. The man obliged and settled a hand on Flash’s shoulder, drawing the boy’s attention to him.

“He-he pushed me… hard.” Flash muttered, looking up at his father like the poor victim he was.

Peter’s guilt only deepened, and he moved the ice pack to cover his eyes as he let a few tears slip past his eyes. This was all such a mess. Mr. Stark was going to take him out of the school, or worse, take him back to the foster home. He didn’t want to go back to the foster home. He liked living with Mr. Stark. They did such fun things, and he learned so, so much. He got lots of hugs too, and-and he loved his school. He didn’t want it all to be ruined just because he shoved Flash...

He had to put up with at least two more minutes of enduring through Flash’s pitiful whines and his father’s glares before the door to the office was being thrown open again. Mr. Stark walked in, looking so much angrier than Flash’s dad had looked as he stared down at Peter curled up in his chair.

The boy shrunk back unsurely. He’d never seen Mr. Stark so mad before… It only solidified his worries.

The man didn’t say a word as his gaze flitted away from Peter and turned over to the boy and his father sitting next to him. His face hardened icily, and Peter hid his face behind the ice pack again to release a few more tears. He didn’t want to go back to the foster home.

“Mr. Stark,” Morita’s voice sounded shaky as he addressed the man. “If you’d like to take a seat, we can begin.”

Tony still didn’t say a word as he glanced at the seat Mr. Morita was gesturing to, right next to Peter. He didn’t sit in that chair though. He took another look at his small boy cowering in his seat, hiding his face behind the ice pack because he was obviously trying to hide the fact that he was crying.

So, in a spur of the moment decision, acting most out of instinct, he strutted over to stand in front of Peter and reached down to lift him from the seat by his armpits. He felt the kid stiffen in surprise as he was lifted from the chair and he immediately felt guilty, because surely Peter didn’t actually think he was going to be mad at him.

He ignored the feeling though and took his seat in the chair Peter had been sitting and settled the boy neatly on his lap. Cradling him in his arms, tucking his lanky legs across his thighs, wrapping his arm around his back, and pressing his hand against his cheek to urge his head onto his chest.

The comfort Tony offered him seemed to work and thankfully nobody dared to say anything about it. Peter dropped the ice pack completely, turning his face to hide it in the man’s jacket as he reached up his free hand to grip a part of Tony’s lapel. He rubbed Peter’s back comfortingly and took another quick glance at the other boy and his father staring at him and Peter, making sure to settle them with one of his most threatening glares.

“What happened?” He growled out, turning to look back at Morita.

The man cleared his throat again and looked over at Flash.

“Eugene, do you mind repeating your side of the story?”

Flash looked downright terrified as he turned his head to glance at Iron Man sitting in the seat a few feet from him, cradling the boy he had just punched in the face an hour earlier.

“Um,” he swallowed, “o-okay. Um, well, I was just asking Peter if he would invite me over to his house, and-and he got really mad-”

“That’s Bullsh-” Tony growled.

“Mr. Stark, _please_ ,” Morita pleaded, looking like he was ready to crap his pants at any moment. Tony silenced, teeth gritting together, and Morita gestured for Flash to continue. He was just glad that there were no cameras around.

“Um-um, well, he got super mad, and-and he pushed me hard. He-he still looked mad and I was scared he was going to hit me or something so I hit him before he could.” Flash started paling when he looked over to meet Tony’s icy glare. “I-I’m so sorry Mr. Stark. I-I know I shouldn’t have hit him.”

Tony didn’t say anything, but he did grit his teeth, because that kid was just a dirty little liar. Peter would never get so angry over something so trivial. Heck, the kid would probably be beyond ecstatic to have one of his friends come over to the Tower after school. That _friend_ sure as hell wouldn’t be this kid though. He wouldn’t stand for it.

“Peter?” Morita questioned hesitantly, “Do you have anything you’d like to add?”

Peter shook his head hurriedly. His entire body was shaking as he held back the oncoming bout of sobs. Tony held him tighter and glanced down at him.

“O-okay then. If that’s the case…” Morita paused, taking a quick glance in Tony’s direction as if looking for permission to continue on. “Suspension for 3 days is the typical punishment for the participants in a fight. Are there any objections?” Morita glanced between the two powerful men sitting in his office worriedly. As if afraid they were going to threaten to sue him and the school for even proposing the idea of suspension.

Mr. Thompson had actually made a move to stand and object, but he was silenced when Tony stood from the chair abruptly, hugging Peter close to his chest in his arms, and looking beyond peeved.

“That’s fine. We’ll be going now.” He reached down and grabbed the Transformer’s backpack Peter had begged for after he lost the Iron Man one and slung it over his shoulder. He left the office, leaving behind the other starstruck three as he carried Peter down out. He carried the boy all the way down the empty hallways to the car in the parking lot, and the boy didn’t seem at all opposed to the babying.

“Do you mind telling me what really happened kiddo?” Tony asked as he got closer to the car, hoping Peter would open up to him when not in the intimidating presence of others. He always seemed to clam up in front of people he was unfamiliar with. Peter simply shook his head violently against him, releasing the pitiful sob he’d been trying so hard to hold back.

Tony didn’t know what he was supposed to do… He had no idea. So, when he reached the car, he slipped into the backseat, next to the booster seat, and settled the boy in his lap, cupping his face in a way that made the kid look at him.

“C’mon kiddo. I promise I won’t be mad. What’d he really say that made you so upset?”

Peter tried to look down at his lap, but Tony forced his gaze back up, so their eyes were locked. The boy’s lip wobbled before he opened his mouth around a choked sob.

“He-he just said that I-I… he said that I was scared to bring him over to the Tower because I didn’t want him to find out that you-you don’t care about me,” he cried, clamping his eyes shut as the tears finally started to fall. “He-he said you don’t love me, but I know you do! You do love me! Don’t you Mr. Stark?!”

Tony’s anger and frustration fell away, and he felt distraught fear replace it as his face fell into a tense frown.

“Of-of course Peter,” Tony admitted, letting his hands fall to the boy’s shoulder, squeezing reassuringly. “Of course I do. You’re my kid, I have to, right?”

Peter kept crying, but he nodded his head affirmatively, reaching his arm up to rub the back of his hand along his eyes to wipe away the tears.

“Yeah-yeah.”

“Good,” Tony smiled in relief when he saw Peter begin to calm down. “Now, how about we go get some ice cream?”

Peter shook his head as Tony lifted him to help him into his booster seat.

Tony looked affronted when the kid said no to ice cream. “What? You love ice cream,” he laughs worriedly, scratching Peter’s scalp gently with his blunt nails. “What’s up, buddy?”

Peter’s lips melded together into a thin line and he avoided looking Tony in the face.

“C’mon kiddie. What’s wrong?”

“I…” Peter faltered, a few more tears falling down his face. “I-I was bad. I don’t deserve ice cream.”

Tony immediately objected. “Listen here kid. You did _nothing_ wrong. You were not bad, you acted completely normal, that kid was the bad one for punching you. I would have probably done a lot worse. Just ask Pepper.”

Peter shook his head in disagreement. “But-but I pushed him first. I-I got _suspended_. That’s so bad.”

“That’s because the school system is stupid and unfair. We’re going to do so many fun things the next three days to make up for it. It’ll be like a vacation and we can do anything you want, because I’m proud you stood up for yourself. Alright? Just because you’re a human with feelings doesn’t mean you deserve to be punished. Now, how about some ice cream to celebrate your first suspension?”

Peter’s nose wrinkled in slight amusement, because apparently Mr. Stark is the only adult who would think a suspension was an achievement.

“No thanks Mr. Stark,” he smiled politely, “I-I don’t really want my picture taken right now.”

Tony’s smile dropped into a confused frown. Is that… is that what Peter thought this was?

He wanted to smack himself for being so stupid, because of course that’s what the kid would think! Every time they stepped out the house to do something together, there were always cameras arranged to be there so they could capture every moment. When Tony took him to the park, when they go out to dinner, to a movie premiere, or when they went shopping for a few clothes… of course Peter thought the cameras would be there.

“There won’t be any cameras. I promise.”

Maybe he should do more with Peter without cameras. Even though Carl wouldn’t like it, he’s sure it would help with his and Peter’s relationship, and it might help with Peter’s uncomfortableness when they go out places.

“You-you pinky-promise?” Peter looked unsure while Tony buckled him into the seat.

The man couldn’t help but smile reassuringly at the boy, holding out his pinky for Peter to link his with.

“I swear on the ice cream we’re going to eat,” Tony replied with a big grin, holding Peter’s tiny finger tightly with his.

Peter smiled back with as big of a grin, sniffling slightly.

“Then, yeah.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Thank you for reading!! I love you ALL dearly!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Endgame has changed me... that's all I'm gonna say.

Tony was already jolting awake in a blind panic. His heart was racing, and he instantly knew something was wrong before the words of warning were ever even uttered by his AI.

“Sir, Master Peter seems to be having a fairly bad nightmare tonight. I’d advise going to check on him.”

Tony grimaced as he threw his legs over the edge of the bed. Ever since Peter had adopted Opie into their temporary family a month ago, he’d only have a select few nightmares once a week or so, but this past week seemed to be getting worse. It was as if the all-encompassing grief Peter used to experience on a nightly basis was slowly developing an immunity to the comfort the kitten offered. It was only Thursday and they were already on the third nightmare of the week. He hoped the cat had just lost his touch. He didn’t want to think about the terrible memories and thoughts that were slowly eating away at Peter’s happiness and hope for a normal childhood.

He made his way down the hall in record time then threw open the door to Peter’s room, finding the boy curled into a tight ball beneath the covers with the sleepy kitty snoozing on the opposite pillow.

“Hey Pete,” Tony slurred tiredly, rubbing at his eyes while he approached the bed with a slight stumble to his step. “Hey, buddy, you okay?”

There was no response from the ball buried beneath the comforter. Tony noticed the trembling of the boy even despite the added layer of a blanket as the boy tried to contain his sobs.

So, as gently as he could muster in his sleep-addled state, Tony picked up the pillow holding the snoozing kitten and moved it to the foot of the bed so he could climb onto the mattress and press up against the headboard without having to worry about smushing him in the process.

“C’mon buddy,” he coaxed gently, pulling off the blanket to expose the little boy. He tugged at the lanky limbs locked tightly around his legs.

Peter sniffled, and for the first time since Tony’s been doing the whole ‘comforting after a bad nightmare’ thing, he shrunk away from the steady hand he had placed on his back. Tony frowned confusedly at the action and retracted his hand. Peter had never pulled away from him before. The kid thrived off all sorts of physical comfort and he’d never turn down the opportunity of human contact. Not even while in the midst of a teary-eyed panic.

“Hey, Cubby c’mon. It’s okay, I’m right here with you. It’s me, Mr. Stark. It’s Tony.”

At that, Peter peeked out from where he’d tucked his face into his knees and gazed up at the man through puffy eyes. Tony was barely able to make out his red, blotchy face with the help of the Iron Man night light beside the bed and the arc reactor glowing at the center of his chest. The kid looked up at him, slowly processing his face, as if coming back to reality after a horrifically realistic tragedy that had just occurred in his grief-muddled mind. It broke Tony’s heart. He’d been nearly 20 when he was faced with his first major tragedy… Peter was far too young to be dealing with anything of the sort.

Then, his tiny lip started to wobble, and Tony feared he was going to burst into hysterics, but Peter just relented and released a quick series of hard sobs. He squeezed his eyes shut tightly then unwound his arms from around his legs and reached out towards the man to be held just as he usually did.

“Aw, Buddy, it’s alright,” Tony soothed, pulling the kid close to his chest.

Peter clung tightly to him, gripping the front of his shirt with tiny fists.

“Don’t leave,” he all but sobs into Tony’s collarbone, pulling roughly at the man’s nightshirt as if trying to pull himself closer. Tony’s eyebrows furrowed worriedly, and he placed a firm hand on the kid’s back to keep him steady.

“It’s alright, Bud. I’m not planning on going anywhere.”

Peter didn’t seem so convinced and he just sobbed harder.

The commotion seemed to have awoke the curious kitten at the end of the bed and he picked the absolute worst time to begin attacking Tony’s bare foot, sinking his sharp claws into his sensitive, exposed skin. Tony jerked back in surprise and subconsciously tightened his hold on the kid as he glared down at the cat at the end of the bed.

“Stupid cat,” he grumbled, turning back to the kid to rub circles onto the kid’s back as he nudged the cat off the mattress, in hopes he would get the message to leave them alone… but of course he wouldn’t, because he was just a stupid cat.

“No, stop!” Peter wailed in a panic when Tony started moving around.

“What? What is it?” Tony questioned in panic, wondering if he had accidentally hurt the kid in some way.

“Don’t go. P’ease,” Peter begged helplessly, tucking himself right beneath his chin. “I-I-I don’t want you to die too Daddy.”

Tony’s heart stopped. Legit stopped… Like, he physically couldn’t breathe anymore type of stopped. It was panic; it was called panic. That’s what it was... He’d screwed up. It was finally official. The kid looked up to him like that, and he sure as hell saw the kid in the same way, but No! He told himself that he wouldn’t get attached. He told himself he wouldn’t let the kid get attached, because it was all just temporary… It was all just supposed to be temporary.

His jumbled mess of thoughts came to a halt when he noticed Peter came to a panicked standstill as well. The sobbing had ceased completely, and Peter slowly wrenched himself away from him, pushing forcefully against the strong hands braced against his back and staring straight at Tony with wide eyes filled with unadulterated fear.

“I-I’m so, so sorry Mr. Stark,” He whimpered shakily. Tony stared back; eyes just as wide, not quite sure how to deal with the innocent admission so early in the morning. Surely… surely, he had heard him wrong.

“It’s okay,” he lied through gritted teeth, pushing against the kid’s back in an attempt to pull him back into the hug. The quicker he could comfort him, the quicker he’d fall asleep and the quicker the kid could forget it ever happened. And the quicker Tony’d be able to go drown himself in sorrow and self-hatred for ruining such a precious kid…

“No-no it’s not,” Peter admitted with fresh tears beginning to form in his eyes, bracing his own hands against the man’s chest to keep himself upright. “I-I’m sorry Mr. Stark. I-I know I’m not supposed to-” Peter choked on a sob, squishing his face into a tight expression in an attempt to repress the tears and sobs. “I-I know you don’t want me to see-see you like that. I-I didn’t mean it, really. I’m-I’m so sorry.”

“Hey-hey-hey,” Tony hushed gently, putting a little more force into pulling Peter back against him. The kid went freely that time, and Tony sighed in relief when he no longer had to look into his face. He didn’t want the kid to see the fear in his own eyes, or the absolute shock that accompanied it. “I-It’s okay, Buddy. It’s okay, we all make little mistakes sometimes. There’s nothing to be sorry about. There’s not a problem”

But there was… there was a problem. It was such a big, big problem.

He should have seen the signs. He should have never listened to Pepper. He should have just shoved the kid off onto a random nanny and showered him in gifts to ease the dull throb of his absence. He shouldn’t have dragged the kid along with him everywhere he went or let him sit in his lap while he worked on parts for the Hotrod. He surely wouldn’t adore this kid as much as he does if he hadn’t made the stupid decision to drop him off at school in the mornings and pick him up in the afternoon just so he could smile while he listened to him ramble on about his busy day. He should have never gone to that stupid parent-orientation where Peter proudly showed off his artwork and the test marked with a large 100% in the corner pinned onto the teachers ‘Honor Students’ cork board in Science class. He shouldn’t have grinned so widely when he saw it… and he most definitely shouldn’t have pinned it up on the fridge like a cheesy parent when the kid brought it home the next day. He shouldn’t have brought the kid to his office after school and set up a little spot for his homework right next to his desk just so he could be within arm’s reach in case he needed help. He should have never started the dumb mini particle accelerator project with him… there were so many things he should have never done, and this was just further proof of that.

He’d been so selfish. He’d pulled this normal, innocent child from a standard, yet depressing, life and forced him into this luxurious, all-inclusive, stress-riddled, anxiety-inducing lifestyle just because he couldn’t get over a cute face and overactive young mind. He had known he’d ruin the kid on Day 1, but he’d felt guilty, lonely, and misunderstood. He had felt guilty for killing the kid’s guardians. So, he tried making up for it, hoping it would somehow fill the clawing void in his chest. He was desperate for companionship… someone who had the potential to love him… who had the choice to love him. He was tired of people saying he wasn’t capable of it… He’d been spiteful. He wanted to prove everyone, including himself, wrong… and now Peter was having to pay for it. He-he was confused… he was attached… and he shouldn't be.

“It’s all good Cubby.” He chanted quietly, feeling his throat tighten with each lie that escaped from his mouth. “It’s okay.”

Why did he ever have to be so selfish?

***

“Pepper, I don’t think… I don’t think this whole... me and Peter thing is working out,” Tony admitted sadly, sitting in the chair facing her desk and dropping his head into his hands. He was tired… so, so, _so_ tired.

“What?!” She panicked, standing from the chair, and rounding the desk to tug at the man’s face so he’d look at her straight on. “What happened? What’s going on?”

Tony’s heartbroken face was all she needed to panic further, and her heart fell into her stomach. “Tony,” she whispered shakily, “what happened?”

“He, um,” Tony pursed his lips and averted his eyes… she wouldn’t understand; she wouldn’t get it. All she’d been was supportive and encouraging of his relationship with Peter. She wouldn’t understand how much of a mistake it was to make him responsible for such a delicate, impressionable mind. “He-He called me Dad last night.”

The confusion was evident on Pepper’s face, and she gripped his shoulder as she tried to muster up and encouraging smile.

“Tony,” she sighed affectionately, “that’s okay. It’s completely normal for him to look at you like that.”

“I’m not his Dad Pepper,” Tony emphasized firmly, glaring up at the woman who had started the ridiculous mess… it was all her fault.

“Tony, stop that,” she instructed firmly, emphasizing her point by squeezing his shoulder tightly.

“Why should I?” Tony growled at her, standing from his seat, “I’m not his Dad Pepper. I never wanted to be. _He_ never wanted me to be. I screwed it all up. And now the kid’s heart is going to break in half when I hand him off to someone more capable than me. He’s going to grow up hating me, and he-he,” he seethed in frustration, face turning red as he struggled to express what he was feeling. “He’s going to turn into some freaking supervillain like-like Syndrome or something and-and I’m-I’m gonna have to fight him or kill him or something to save the world and- God,” he groaned shakily, “I should have never watched that movie with him. That was a terrible choice… I’ve already stuck the idea inside his head… Oh god, the parallels are just…-”

Pepper’s expression dropped sadly, and she reached out to pull Tony towards her. He didn’t resist it…

She wrapped her arms around his shoulder, and he wrapped his around her waist. She pressed her cheek gently against his and turned her head to press a kiss right in front of his ear. He could already feel his eyes burning and he dipped his head so his nose pressed into her shoulder.

“He’s-he’s gonna end up turning on me because…” He bites his lip and swallows back the sob in his chest as he twists to hide in her neck. “I-I just want him to have a good life. And-and I’ve already made it obvious that I can’t do that for him. I’ve screwed him up… he-he knows how to smile for cameras even when he’s not happy. He-he shouldn’t have to do that.”

“Tony,” Pepper soothed, moving her hand up to thread through his hair… she’d always wanted to do that. His hair always looked so soft… and looks most definitely weren’t deceiving in this case. “You need to stop being so hard on yourself. You’re so good with him… he loves you so much. That’s nothing you should be ashamed about.”

“Pepper,” Tony grit out, trying desperately to get her to understand how wrong the entire situation was. It was all _so_ wrong. “I-I can’t be a-a Dad. I’m Tony Stark. I’m just not meant to be anyone’s father. It’s written in the stars Pep.”

“Well,” Pepper smiled softly to herself, “maybe so…”

His grip on her waist tightened, but he didn’t know why, because that’s exactly what he’d been wanting to hear her say. He wanted her to understand… but why was it so hard for him to hear?

“I don’t think you were made to be just anyone’s Dad either,” she paused, “but I _do_ think you were meant to be Peter’s. I’ve never seen you so happy.”

“I-I can’t Pepper,” Tony groaned again, lifting his head from her shoulder to stare at her face. “I-I can’t risk messing him up. He’s just so… he’s so perfect, and I-I-I’d just muck it all up… just like I did with you.”

Pepper’s face hardened into a serious expression as she moved her hands to cup either side of Tony’s face. Tony watches in surprise, and it takes him a moment to comprehend the fact that Pepper was pulling him forward and their faces were getting very, very close.

He puffed out a warm breath of air and closed his eyes just before their lips met in a long-awaited reunion.

“Pepper,” he breathed slowly when she pulled away from him gently. She stroked the side of his face lovingly and he bowed his head to nuzzle closer into her hand, looking up at her with such a lost vulnerability it nearly broke her heart in half.

“Tony,” she breathed back just as heavily, smiling down at him adoringly. “You’re a good dad. I don’t want you to ever doubt that. You didn’t mess anything up with anyone-”

“Ms. Potts!” The door to her office was thrown open and in came Carl with an ecstatic grin on his face as he stared down at the tablet in his hand. Pepper jumped away from Tony in a knee-jerk reaction, smoothing down her skirt and hair instinctively while Tony turned his back to Carl and hurriedly ran a hand over his face.

“What is it Carl?” Pepper replied steadily, clearing her throat.

Carl looked up at them for the first time with his bright grin showing, oblivious to the tender moment he had just intruded on.

“I have a proposition for you!”

***

“Uncle Rhodey?” Peter questioned curiously, a hint of surprise lining his voice while he climbed into the backseat of the car. “What are you doing? Where’s Mr. Stark?”

Rhodey twisted around in the driver’s seat and grinned at his nephew brightly. “What? You not happy to see me or something? It’s been a whole week kid!” He laughed teasingly and reached into the backseat to poke him in the side. “Did you really not miss me at all?”

“No-no-no I missed you lots!” Peter insisted through his giggles as he pushed the hand away. “I-I-I just thought Mr. Stark was picking me up.”

“Not today,” Rhodey responded, turning back in his seat, and slowly pulling out of the line of cars. “We’re on Uncle Rhodey time for the next couple hours while Tony’s in an important meeting.”

“Oh,” Peter responded in a small voice, smile slowly falling from his face as he turns to gaze out the window, “so he’s gotta meeting then?”

“Yep, he asked me to come pick you up so you wouldn’t have to deal with grumpy Uncle Happy the whole time.” Rhodey laughed, glancing back at the sulking kid in the backseat. He was filled with a newfound determination to cheer the kid up.

“So, he’s not mad at me then?” Peter questioned quietly, peeking a glance up at the rearview mirror to meet Rhodey’s studious eyes.

Rhodey frowned confusedly. “Why would you think he’s mad? He just got stuck at work at the wrong time, this has happened before kiddo. There’s no reason to think he’s mad.”

Peter turned away to look out the window and Rhodey noticed the way his bottom lip began to wobble.

“Alright, how about this?” Rhodey bargained. “If I take you for some ice cream, you gotta tell me what’s going on in that bright little head of yours.”

Peter turned to look at him again, a contemplative frown set on his face. It must have been pretty serious if he was even hesitating, and that made Rhodey’s gut churn uncomfortably. Who knew what guilt the kid was latching on to. He was almost as bad as Tony himself when it came to that front.

“Alright… no cameras, right?”

“No cameras buddy,” Rhodey reassured with a warm smile.

A few minutes later and Rhodey was pulling into the only empty parking spot in front of Peter’s favorite hole-in-the-wall ice cream shop. He took a quick glance around to make sure there were no Paps lingering around, then he stepped out of the car and opened the backseat to assist Peter in his struggle to unbuckle his seatbelt.

Once they were seated with their ice cream, and at least half of it had been smeared across Peter’s face in an attempt to eat it, it was finally time to talk. Rhodey reached across the table with a wet napkin to clean off Peter’s chocolate-y face while the kid pushed away his empty ice cream cup with a quick lick to his lips before Rhodey could wipe away the residue ice cream.

“So, tell me what’s bugging you kiddie.”

Peter frowned sadly as Rhodey pushed and prodded at his chubby cheeks to rid him of all the sticky chocolate. He remembered Mr. Stark doing that to him too… albeit just a little rougher and more unsure than Uncle Rhodey.

“It-it-it’s just something that happened last night...”

Peter stared down at his hands in his lap and Rhodey pulled away with a frown on his face while he studied his nephew.

“Pete, it’s okay,” he spoke softly, “you know you can tell me anything Buddy.”

“I know Uncle Rhodey,” Peter admitted, reaching up a tight knuckle to rub at his right eye. “I-I-It’s just really embarrassing, and I think Mr. Stark is mad at me cuz of it.”

“What happened?” Rhodey pressed gently. He couldn’t imagine Tony getting mad at the kid.

“I-I-I had a really, _really_ bad nightmare last night about Mr. Stark. He-um, he adopted me in the dream and-and I was so happy, you know… but I get it’s not real, okay,” he added hurriedly before Rhodey could say anything. “But-um-after he adopted me, he-he had to go be Iron Man for a little bit, which is awesome! But-but, you know, also not awesome at the same time because he got really, really hurt. He got so hurt by the bad robot like my Aunt May and Uncle Ben.” By then Peter was crying and hiccupping as he rambled through the rest of his story with repressed sobs. “I went to live with them when I was three… so long ago,” he cried, “and-and they died because I just wanted to go see Iron Man and all the cool science inventions. And-and I didn’t want Mr. Stark dying too… I knew he would.” Peter’s face scrunched up as he forced the words out.

“He-he-he got so-so hurt because of me. And-and it was so scary, you know. I thought it was real when I woke up…”

He stopped there and sniffed pitifully as he desperately tried to wipe away all the tears. It was so embarrassing to cry in the middle of an ice cream shop. He was a big boy now.

Rhodey reached across the table and grabbed onto his hand.

“Buddy, why would you think Tony would be upset about that?”

Peter’s lip wobbled even more as he looked up to look at Rhodey with an empty stare. “I-I’m not finished yet.”

Rhodey didn’t say anything else and let Peter continue with his story.

“So, um,” Peter swallowed, continuing to wipe at his eyes, “I-I was really upset when I woke up, and-and then Mr. Stark was there like he always is when I have nightmares… I was so happy to see him, because that meant my dream wasn’t real, right? But, um,” he bit down heavily on his lip to keep it still.

“Then-then I made and accident and called him ‘Daddy’ because that’s what he was in my dream, and-and I know he’s just so mad about it! I didn’t mean to call him that Uncle Rhodey, I promise! Can you tell him I’m sorry? I don’t want him to be mad at me anymore.”

Rhodey’s eyes softened in a mixture of relief, sadness, and pure unadulterated joy. He’d been waiting for this revelation ever since he came around to find Peter in Tony’s penthouse. It was obvious to him instantly what type of relationship would grow between his best friend and nephew. It made him giddy inside.

“Aww, buddy. I guarantee you that there is nothing for you to worry about. Tony’s a pure softie at heart, I’m sure he loved it.”

“Y-yeah?” Peter gleamed with a hopeful smile.

“You bet,” Rhodey grinned back, “he loves you a lot more than you think buddy.”

Rhodey was happy to report that Peter was back to his happy, grinning self with just a few tear streaks trailing down his cheeks.

***

“Alright,” Carl started out excitedly, “so Peter and Opie have done a tremendous job in bettering your image which in turn makes the company look better.” The man quickly scrolled through the brief history of increasing stocks over the past month along with the many, many retweets of the pictures Tony had been instructed to take of their times together. There had been a rather worrying amount of ‘cooing’ about their relationship as well. “And I believe we’ve milked as much out of this as we could, and the results are fantastic, I have to admit. They’re higher than they’ve ever been in years!” Tony scoffed in slight amusement at Carl’s enthusiasm.

“And, must I say Mr. Stark,” Carl began with a wide grin, “taking Peter out ‘incognito’ helped to better convince people that it wasn’t just another PR stunt. I believe the responses we received from those leaked pictures were much better than the setup shoots.” Tony grimaced angrily but repressed it as best he could as Carl continued. The man was only doing his job, he couldn’t get mad, especially when everything he was saying was true. As far as Carl knew, Peter was just another pawn to him.

“But I think there is one last trick we can pull to try and bump us up just that little bit further. We can rap this whole thing up in a nice little bow without anyone becoming suspicious. The perfect ending to this chapter in your and Peter’s lives.”

Both Tony and Pepper stiffened, because this conversation could only go two very opposite ways.

“I’ve compiled a lengthy list of promising applicants willing to take in Peter as a permanent part of their family. It would be easy to sell this as ‘Tony Stark’ rescuing a suffering orphan by taking temporary guardianship of him whilst searching for a proper home where he could be properly loved.” Carl smiled while he held out a think manila folder to Tony, before immediately remembering his peeve and settling it down on the edge of Pepper’s desk.

“And, even better news,” Carl seemed to just get more and more excited, “all the applicants are more than happy to take in Opie as well. That way we don’t have to worry about it leaking to the press that you abandoned your ‘foster son’s’ dear pet at the pound as soon as he left. I made sure to keep all our bases covered. Soon, you’ll be a free man once again Mr. Stark.” Carl smiled tightly at him.

Tony swallowed, but his face remained neutral as he hesitantly picked up the thick manila folder with shaky hands.

“If you’d like, we can go talk in the meeting room to go over all the applicants that you’re interested in handing Peter over to.”

That statement itself made Tony’s heart hurt. It made him feel like a selfish bastard for using Peter this whole time, and it only increased his guilt tenfold. He was the worst father any child could have. He used his ‘son’ to make himself look better… just like Howard had done. It just further proved that there was no escaping the Stark curse.

“Yeah, let’s go.”

He started forward, following Carl, but Pepper’s hand shot out and grabbed onto his arm. He turned to look at her, and he was met with a desperate, pleading expression. She was shaking her head wildly, eyes shining with fresh tears.

“Please don’t do this Tony. You’ll regret it…”

Tony wanted to listen… he wanted to so bad. He wanted to trust her… but the last time he’d done that, he got attached; the kid became attached; he ruined Peter’s life. He couldn’t continue to do that. He couldn’t keep listening to her no matter how much he wanted to.

“I can’t let him get more attached that he already is. It’ll only make it harder in the future.”

“Why does there have to be a ‘future’?” Pepper insisted accusingly.

Tony just looked at her, face falling into a sorrowful frown before turning his back on her and walking out the room.

***

Peter had a blast with Uncle Rhodey.

After their ice cream and short talk, Peter’s energy bounced back, and Rhodey took them to his favorite park. Rhodey pushed him on the swing set and helped him do the monkey bars just like Mr. Stark would do when they went together for the cameras. Then, they bought some bread from a nearby vendor to feed the ducks by a small lake in the park while they walked the trail. And, just like Mr. Stark, Peter was able to convince his Uncle Rhodey to put him on his shoulders. Peter loved being tall, he could see everything!

They stayed at the park for a little while, and it was so much fun. Of course, he wished that Mr. Stark and Ms. Pepper could have been there the whole time, but he didn’t tell Rhodey that, because that would have hurt his feelings. He liked spending time with his Uncle Rhodey too… it reminded him of the time he spent with his Uncle Ben and that always made him feel better.

They even went to visit Uncle Agent (that’s what Mr. Stark said to call him), and he was so cool! Peter had only met him a few times, but he always had cool things to show off to Peter, and he had lots and lots of cool Captain America things. Peter loved Captain America. Not as much as Iron Man obviously, but he and Uncle Agent were able to talk about Captain America like it was a second language, and that was so much fun. Sometimes, if the man was in an exceptionally good mood, Peter could get him to read some of the Captain America comic books to him too.

Then, it started getting a little late, and Rhodey said it was time to start heading back to the Tower. Peter was excited to get back home and see Mr. Stark, because there were _so_ many things, he had to tell him about his day. Like the math test he got back today with a perfect score! He knew Mr. Stark would be so proud of him, and the test would go right on the fridge with a bright red and gold Iron Man sticker in the corner.

But when Rhodey and Peter arrived in the penthouse, Mr. Stark wasn’t home, and they had to wait a whole ‘nother hour before he got done with his important meetings.

Rhodey made him eat dinner and shower, and by the time he was done Mr. Stark was due home. Peter was eating carrots on the couch while he watched cartoons in his pajamas when he heard the elevator ding and Mr. Stark stepped out with a small scowl on his face. Pepper was trailing after him with worry lines set deep in her forehead.

Peter didn’t seem to care though; it wasn’t abnormal for Mr. Stark to be kinda pissy after a long day of meetings. So, he scrambled out from under the blanket, while Rhodey tried to save at least a few of the carrots, so he could try and cheer the man up. He stood excitedly on the couch cushions and bounced eagerly as Mr. Stark approached them.

“Mr. Stark!” Peter squealed happily, using the arm of the couch to leap out and fling himself into the man. The man staggered back a bit, but he caught Peter just like he always did. Peter hugged him tightly around the neck, but Tony didn’t hug him back as eagerly as he usually did, and he had to swallow down the idea that the man was mad. He trusted Rhodey though… because Uncle Rhodey was almost always right. Sometimes righter than Mr. Stark… so that was pretty good.

“I did so much today Mr. Stark! Me and Uncle Rhodey had _so_ much fun. You should have been there.” Peter pulled back to look him in the face, and he frowned when he found that Mr. Stark wasn’t smiling back at him. Something must’ve been wrong.

“Hm,” he hummed offhandedly, maneuvering Peter onto his hip as he walked further into the room. Peter stopped talking and turned over to look at Rhodey, but the man was no help to him. He seemed just as surprised by the unusual demeanor that had taken over the genius.

“Listen kid,” Mr. Stark began with a cold edge to his tone. Peter didn’t have a good feeling about that.

“Tony please, don’t do this right now.” Pepper almost begged from behind him, looking desperate for Tony to actually listen to her one last time.

“Wha-what’s going on?” Peter asked worriedly, shrinking back, but all three adults ignored him and the tension in the room only seemed to worsen.

Rhodey stood from the couch, approached them with an angered glint in his eyes. “What are you doing Tony?”

“Both of you just stop.” Tony snapped angrily, tightening his hold on Peter so much that it almost hurt.

“Mr. Stark,” Peter whined, wiggling in his arms to escape the steely grip the man had on him. “Stop, it hurts.”

Tony’s eyes snapped to look at him directly and for a moment Peter saw a flash of the usual Mr. Stark… and then he was being placed on the ground.

“We have to talk kiddo. Something serious.”

“Tony, please,” Pepper continued. “You aren’t thinking this through.”

“Pepper, stop.” Tony snapped at her again… Mr. Stark never snapped at Pepper like that.

Peter couldn’t help but start tearing up again. Something was really, really wrong. He slowly backed away from Mr. Stark, towards his Uncle Rhodey. He didn’t like the angry look in his eyes…

He reached his arms up, silently asking Rhodey to pick him up and ignoring the fact that it made him look like a baby. The man happily obliged, tucking the kid close to his chest. Peter hid his face in his shoulder, letting the tears slip through. Something was wrong… something was very, very wrong. Mr. Stark was so, so mad at him

He didn’t mean it. He didn't mean to say it. It was an accident. It really was.

But no matter how many times he said it, screamed it, or whispered it out through his desperate sobs, Mr. Stark wouldn’t listen… He was making him leave… forever.

It was all his fault.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for ending it on such a depressing note :(  
> Ik lots of you are probably getting over Endgame... so I apologize for possibly making it worse if I have. I guess I just have bad timing...
> 
> I WILL be continuing though. So... no need to worry on that front.  
> Hope you sorta enjoyed it...


	10. Chapter 10

“It looks like that’s the last of it.” Carl smiles as he watches a reluctant Tony Stark use the fancy fountain pen to scrawl his signature along the bottom of the loose-leaf sheet of paper. His hand was stiff and shaky; the signature wasn’t as fluid as it usually was… but that just made Carl’s heart warm at the thought of his boss caring enough about the child to be nervous. He didn’t really think much of it.

The coffee shop they were meeting in was swarmed by press and overeager reporters begging for a story. His men were guarding the door to make sure none of them got inside, but the smarmy vultures were still able to capture the interaction through the slightly tinted windows of the shop. Carl chose this particular shop for that very purpose, so the lack of privacy was no coincidence.

Pepper was standing behind Tony, looking both stoic and terribly perturbed at the same time. Tony didn’t dare look at her as he signed the paper… finalizing the transaction Pepper had been fighting him tooth and nail over. He wasn’t ready to face that disappointment on her face just yet. Instead, he made the terrible decision of turning towards the sobbing child cradled in his best friend’s arms.

Tony knew 100% that this was for the best. The nervous couple huddled together a few feet away from him seemed wonderful; he had handpicked them himself, studying background checks and everything. They were perfect. The stereotypical American couple looking for a sweet child to share their love with. In fact, they’d been going through the adoption process far before Tony had ever even met Peter. They would make much better parents than himself. He _knew_ Peter would be better off with them. Opie was meowing loudly in a mini carrier sitting atop one of the tables, and Carl looked extremely pleased with himself as he tucked away the sheets of paper for their archives, completely oblivious to the complete and utter depression permeating from the other adults in the room.

Peter’s sobs and wails had petered down to muffled chokes and soft sniffles as his whole body shook uncontrollably in Rhodey’s arms. He clung to the man desperately, hiding his face into Rhodey’s neck. Pepper looked like she was about to burst into tears herself, and Rhodey just looked downright mad. Tony was sure that if the man had the opportunity, he would have gladly adopted Peter himself… but his life wasn’t very accommodating to a child. Much like Tony’s wasn’t.

He hated being the bad guy in this situation. Pepper hated him for this. Rhodey hated him too… and Peter. They all hated him… but he knew he was doing the right thing. Peter’d be over him in a month, he’d live a wonderful life, and his life would be back to normal.

Despite knowing this, Tony was exhausted and despondent. He just didn’t know what to do with himself. He’d been preparing himself for days to be ready for this very moment, but it didn’t make the exchange any easier on his heart. He hated the fact that he even had a heart to be hurt now. Two months ago, this would never had hurt so much. Yet, here he was... And he just needed to get the whole thing done and over with so he could move on and go back to his self-destructive ways without having to worry about an innocent kid and his pet cat getting caught in the crossfires.

“Hey kid,” Tony began hoarsely, furrowing his eyebrows together worriedly when there was no response from the child. He slowly approached Rhodey and settled a hand on Peter’s back softly. He drew it away when Peter’s entire body flinched at the touch. He supposed he deserved that reaction after refusing hugs for the past two days.

“Hey, Buddy, it’s alright. I promise you’ll really love them, okay? Much more than me. I betcha they’ll even take you to one of those nasty arcades with all those little-kiddy germs I’m afraid of. Doesn’t that sound like fun?”

Peter lifted his head from Rhodey’s neck to glare at him. His eyes were rimmed with red rings around his puffy eyes, and his cheeks were glossy from the numerous tears that had fallen over the course of the morning. His tiny lip trembled as he looked at him, sending another quick jolt of pain into Tony’s chest. Then the glare softened, as if Peter had finally given up on being mad, and tears began to form in his eyes again. He unwrapped his arms from Rhodey’s neck and slowly lifted them towards Tony, hoping the man would accept a last-ditch attempt for a hug.

Tony sighed inwardly, forcing back the tears behind his eyes, and allowed himself the momentary pleasure of holding Peter in his arms one last time, pulling the kid close to his chest. He hadn’t granted himself that pleasure since the moment he had made his decision… he hadn’t needed to get even more attached than he already was, and hugs would have just made it harder.

“I wanna stay with you,” Peter whimpered, collapsing in his arms tiredly, not even bothering to put any effort into the embrace, because, really, what was the point.

“I know you do Buddy,” Tony whispered, taking a few steps away from the small group of people for at least a little bit of privacy. “I want you to stay too-”

“Then why won’t you let me?” Peter practically wailed, dropping his head to Tony’s shoulder, muffling the cries into his soft suit jacket. Tony had worn it because it was Peter’s favorite. The kid had said it was soft and warm. ‘Perfect for lots of hugs’ he had said. That thought made the lump in his throat harden further.

“It’s not good for you Peter. You need to have a Mom and Dad that can take care of you and love you like you deserve. I can’t-”

Peter interrupted him again with a tinge of anger and betrayal lining his little-boy voice. “Don’t you love me? You said you did.”

Tony’s mouth opened and closed for a moment before he released an exasperated breath and stared softly at the sad child in his arms, reaching a hand up to brush away one of the small curls that had fallen in his face. That’d probably be the last time he touched those soft curls. “Ye-yeah I do Pete, but that’s not-”

“And Ms. Pepper loves me too! She said so! Why can’t you two be my new Mommy and Daddy? You both love me lots! I want _you_ to be my Daddy Mr. Stark.” Tears fell down Peter’s face as he desperately plead his case. He gripped Tony’s shirt collar tightly in his hands and stared straight into his eyes as the tears fell from his own.

It made the lump in his throat harden into a huge rock. It hurt… a lot. He stared right into Peter’s glassy eyes, and swallowed around it, finding it difficult to ignore the stinging in his eyes. He wasn’t going to cry; he wasn’t going to give in to the urge. He had to do the right thing at least once in his life… no matter how much he didn’t want to. He needed to stop being selfish for once.

“I love _you_ Mr. Stark,” Peter pressed insistently, reaching his hands up to cup Tony’s cheeks as tears continued to pour down his own, leaving glistening trails in their wake.

“I’m so, so sorry Cubby,” Tony whispered softly, feeling the sting behind his eyes begin to threaten his composure. The saliva in his mouth became sticky has he tried to form the words around it. His voice had caught on the apology, and he wanted to take it back. He wanted to take it back so bad. “I’m sorry.”

But he couldn’t.

“No,” Peter’s voice wavered as he shook his head wildly, refusing to accept it. The denial in his eyes was clear, as if he couldn’t quite believe it was actually happening. “No, no.” More tears fell from his face, and his eyes widened in shock as he felt Tony begin moving towards the group again. His grip tightened on the collar, clawing desperately to find a better grip. “No Mr. Stark.”

Tony didn’t dare look at him as he slowly tried peeling the tightened limbs from where they’d moved to wrap around his neck. He didn’t want to see the betrayal in his kid’s eyes as he said their last goodbye.

“Mr. Stark,” Peter’s voice was so small. It was begging, and it shook, and it rattled all around in Tony’s chest painfully.

Peter’s limbs tightened even further around him, and Tony needed the help of Peter’s new ‘father’ to peel him away.

“No. No! Mr. Stark! NO!” He choked on the words, reaching desperately for the man when he was torn away. “NOO!”

He grit his teeth together and practically threw Peter into the other man’s arms to refrain from pulling the boy to his chest and never letting go again as the pained screams reverberated in his ears. He couldn’t look back...

“Mr. Stark,” He wailed loudly, kicking his limbs frantically to try and get away from the man struggling to hold onto him. Tony turned away abruptly and retreated. He pressed a hand to his face, pinching his nose and digging his thumb and forefinger into the corners of his eyes to suppress the oncoming bout of tears. It was harder than he thought... He grit his teeth together and winced, holding back a pained sob as he heard Peter’s heartbroken wails following him all the way to the door during his hurried retreat.

He threw the door open and stumbled out of the shop, completely forgetting about the monstrous crowd swarming the place.

_“Mr. Stark! Mr. Stark!”_

_“Tony, over here!”_

_“Mr. Stark! Can you answer a few questions?!”_

Microphones were pushed in his face and he shoved them all away, keeping his head bowed, and face concealed. He didn’t need the entire world knowing about his inevitable breakdown just because he was stupid enough to get himself attached to a seven-year-old kid. He was the stoic, emotionless, genius billionaire. A Stark… Stark men didn’t cry.

_“Were those the adoptive parents you found for Peter?”_

There were more questions. Questions he didn’t want to answer.

_“It looks like Peter was fairly upset. Care to comment?”_

He grit his teeth harder, clenching his fists as he desperately pushed himself through the crowd. Growling out the occasional ‘no comment’ through the growing bile in his mouth, hoping that they would just leave him alone. He just wanted to be left alone…

_“Are you planning to reunite with Peter in the future?”_

“No comments!” He bellowed angrily, exposing his reddened, blotchy face to the crowd as he turned to scream threateningly at them. Tears leaked from his eyes and his mouth fell into an angered scowl. “Get outta here! Leave me alone! Leave the kid alone! Just LEAVE!”

They stopped talking over each other. There were a few more flashes of cameras, and the crowd stopped pressing in so close, but they didn’t leave. Of course they didn’t… not when _Tony Stark_ was crying right in front of them.

So, Tony took the opportunity and shoved his way violently through the crowd, throwing open his car door and collapsing into the driver's seat. He fumbled with his keys - his hands were shaking - and he didn’t even bother with a seatbelt. He revved the engine loudly and peeled away from the crowd, away from the shop… away from Peter.

And once he was finally by himself - alone in his car, accompanied by the occasional honking of horns as he cruised down the busy streets of Queens - he cried.

***

Tony had locked himself away in his mansion for an entire week after the Peter incident. Pepper didn’t hear a peep from him that whole week, and she was willing to leave him be so he could get a handle on the changes to his life. He needed the time to grieve. She was worried of course, and she was mad… but she understood. She hated how little faith he had in himself, but his reasoning behind what he did… she couldn’t blame him for that… even though everyone who’d seen him interact with Peter knew his thinking was wrong.

She missed the hyperactive boy that’d come barreling into her office after finishing homework in Tony’s, requesting for the candy she kept specifically for him in her bottom drawer. She missed when Peter hold her hand as they walked through the halls of SI while Tony was stuck in a meeting, sucking on his lollipop as he filled her in on the little details of his day. She missed the way Tony would smile at him too. The way he’d sneak behind her and Peter while they were doing puzzles on the floor in her office so he could surprise them after his meetings. She missed the warmth in her heart when Peter would giggle excitedly before throwing himself at the man for a hug… she missed it, and she knew Tony must’ve missed it too.

She wasn’t sure if he had watched the news or read the articles… or if he had talked to Peter. All she knew is both her boys were miserable without each other.

Peter had called her cell multiple times, crying and sobbing into the receiver, begging for her to come pick him up from his new home, but she couldn’t… She wanted to, she wanted to sweep in, grab him and bring him back to Tony so both her boys would be happy and together again; so they could be a family again. He was with his new foster parents now though, and they had every intention of adopting him as soon as the courts would allow… Pepper couldn’t get in the way of the new, loving family Peter would have. Tony had made his decision, however stupid it may have been, and she had to respect that.

She knew deep down that Peter would adjust, but every time she got a call from the unsaved number her heart dropped that much more, and it’d send her into a short spurt of sobs after hanging up. She dreaded seeing that number on her screen.

She’d texted Tony every time she got off the phone with him, telling him Peter wanted to talk… that he was really missing him, but she never got any replies, which only seemed to spur on the tears.

So, on the seventh day, when she was finished up with her work, she went up to the penthouse for an intervention. It wasn’t healthy for Tony to be on his own that long. She couldn’t let him go through it alone any longer.

“Tony?”

She peeked her head out of the elevator unsurely. She didn’t know what exactly she should have been expecting, but a clean, untouched penthouse was not it.

“JARVIS, where is Mr. Stark?”

“He’s in the Living Room Ms. Potts.” JARVIS answered softly, a tinge of worry lining his artificial voice.

Pepper turned her head back to the set of couches, and she didn’t know how she had missed him the first time. He was sitting on the floor, back pressed against the front of the couch, curled in and slouched over himself as a familiar glass bottle hung idly in his left hand. His eyes were glazed over in a depressed, drunken haze, and his beard had grown in.

Pepper’s worried expression morphed into a saddened pity and she rounded the side of the couch to approach the genius with caution. She didn’t know how much he’d drunken already… but that blank stare in his eyes must have meant it was a lot.

“I’m fine,” he replied gruffly, voice hoarse as he shook his head to shake himself back to reality.

“No, you’re not,” Pepper retorted softly, taking a seat on the couch beside where his back was pressed. Her leg brushed against his arm and she reached down to comb her fingers through his hair softly. “It’s okay to not be okay with this Tony.”

Tony didn’t say anything. His head slumped to the side to rest against her knee, and he just stayed there. She was happy to keep him company.

“I-I,” he began after a few more moments, “I didn’t say goodbye.”

“Honey, it’s okay,” Pepper soothed softly, continuing her ministrations with his hair. Tugging out some of the unruly knots while she was at it. “It’s okay. You just need to call him. He really misses you, y’know.”

“He hates me,” he corrected immediately, with a quiet loathing lingering behind the words.

“He doesn’t hate you. He loves you and he misses you. I’m sure the Adlers won’t mind you visiting him once in a while.”

“I-I,” he choked on the words, “I can’t Pepper.”

“Okay, okay,” Pepper relented, reaching up her other hand to wipe her own tears off her cheek. “Okay.”

***

“So, was I right, or was I right?” Flash grinned, towering over Peter’s desk with a triumphant bounce to his voice. “Little orphan Peter Parker, the Pity PR Project. How’s it feel, huh?”

Peter stayed silent. Flash had been trying to get a rise out of him the whole week, and nothing worked. He made sure to keep up a neutral expression, just like he’d seen Ms. Pepper do a thousand times when one of the board members would say something really stupid to her in passing.

Peter would have probably jumped to his and Mr. Stark’s defense if he wasn’t so tired too. His body barely worked anymore. He just missed Mr. Stark so bad, and he didn’t want to fight Flash about it. He’d been fighting with himself enough.

Mrs. and Mr. Adler were so nice to him and Opie. They even let Ned come over once during the week, but it didn’t really lift Peter’s mood. The two friends had just sat in his room in silence, putting together one of the Lego sets the Adlers had bought him, while the silent tears fell down his face. Ned didn’t say anything about it, but Peter knew he felt bad.

“You know what my Dad showed me this morning?” Flash continued, just a little bit peeved when he received no reaction from the boy. “He showed me pictures of you screaming and crying like a little baby in that coffee shop because you wanted your ‘Daddy’. Too bad he didn’t want to be your Daddy, huh?”

“Go away,” Peter whimpered pitifully, face finally crumpling as he burrowed his face into his arms atop his desk so Flash wouldn’t see him cry.

He could practically hear the bully preening himself with pride while walking away.

He just missed Mr. Stark…

***

“Welcome back Mr. Stark!” Carl grinned, waltzing into his office and dropping a heavy stack of papers on his desk. “For a while I thought you weren’t coming back.” The man laughed good-naturedly as he leafed through the stack for a specific paper that needed to be signed.

Tony grunted in acknowledgement, not at all in the mood to talk.

“I apologize that it was so hard for you to say goodbye. I can understand,” Carl continued as if nothing was wrong, “but I did enjoy the added spectacle you put on… at least I hope it was a spectacle, I didn’t think-” Carl paused when he got a look at his boss’ angered face. “Anyway! The effects of that stunt were double what the PR team predicted it to be. It was really a touching farewell, and the world is eating it up.”

Tony frowned, scratching his pen across the paper Carl shoved at him in a messy signature.

“What are you talking about?”

Carl paused for just a moment to look at him before pulling out the tablet from seemingly nowhere. Tony rolled his eyes, because goodness knows he’d seen _enough_ of that tablet. Then he saw the headline.

_‘Tony Stark gets emotional during their farewell’_

_‘A Heartbreaking Goodbye between Stark and his surrogate son’_

_‘Stark’s Iron Heart breaks after doing the right thing’_

_‘Peter Parker’s new Parents and his saddening farewell to his hero: Iron Man’_

Then, sure enough, there’s two pictures, side by side. One of him trying to hide the tears in his eyes, and the other of Peter sobbing helplessly in the arms of his new foster father inside the coffee shop.

Of course.

“You know,” Carl starts again, pulling the tablet away from him. He laughs in amusement, “some people have even began a petition. They want you to adopt Peter yourself. This is quite possibly the best recognition you could have asked for, sir. Perhaps we can even set up a visiting date to appease them.”

“Hmph,” Tony grunted out, turning his head down to stare at his desk. The stirring in his gut had returned, and he loathed himself for starting the whole PR stunt to begin with.

***

“Honey, please. You need to eat,” Mrs. Adler insisted, holding up the forkful of mash potatoes to Peter’s mouth for a second time.

“I’m not hungry.” Peter insisted, turning his head away from her defiantly. He stared across the room at the family picture that they insisted on, hanging on the wall. He hated that picture...

“Son, please,” Mr. Adler spoke up, a hint of sternness and annoyance lingering in his tone. It seemed the man’s patience was beginning to wear thin after weeks of defiance on Peter’s part.

“I’m not your _son_ ,” Peter muttered under his breath, crossing his arms over his chest. He turned his head to glare at the man pointedly.

“Go to your room.” Mr. Adler instructed frustratedly, jutting his finger to the hall across the house, leading to Peter’s room. Peter could see the anger rising over the man’s features and for some reason satisfaction began building his chest.

“Mike,” Mrs. Adler scolded gently, obviously upset at her husband’s outburst. Peter takes the opportunity and darts from the table, tears streaming down his face as he slammed the door to his room shut. He could still hear them talking in the Dining Room, but he didn’t care.

“We can’t allow him to talk like this to us Mya. We’re going to be his parents soon, and he has to learn to respect us. Who knows what bad habits he picked up while staying with Stark. I’ve given him two weeks to settle in, but I’m not going to let him mouth off to me like that anymore.” Mr. Adler grumbled. “You know, when I was his age, my father wouldn’t have hesitated to smack me upside the head for being so disrespectful.”

Peter cringed and clambered onto his bed, reaching for a pillow to hug, as Mrs. Adler scolded her husband for insinuating what he did.

“Mike! Stop talking like that. He’s still adjusting. Give him time. He was really attached to Mr. Stark, so you have to give him time to get used to us. Now stop being a grump and eat your dinner before I send you to _your_ room.”

That’s how the conversation ended.

Peter tried hard muffle his sobs the best he could, pressing his face into the pillow. He remembered his dinners with Mr. Stark… they were always so fun. Sometimes Ms. Pepper or Uncle Rhodey would join them and they’d all laugh and tell jokes all through dinner. One time Mr. Stark had even thrown mashed potatoes and peas at Uncle Rhodey because he tried telling Peter something bad about what Mr. Stark did at MIT. Then, Ms. Pepper got super mad, but neither of them cared, and soon there were mashed potatoes everywhere! The memory made him smile sadly and giggle through his tears.

Dinners hadn’t always been messy, but they _were_ always fun though. It was never quiet like with it was with the Adlers, and even if Mr. Stark burnt their food while attempting to cook it, Peter always loved it because Mr. Stark made it specifically for him. And after dinner they’d watch a movie… always. They _always_ watched a movie no matter how tired Mr. Stark was because of work. Sometimes Mr. Stark would even fall asleep during the movie just like Peter always did, but no matter what… Peter was always tucked into bed with Opie at some point during the night. Warm and comfy in his Star Wars comforter.

Peter missed it. The Adlers didn’t watch movies with him. They didn’t like Star Wars like Mr. Stark did either. They thought it was too violent…

The memories made him sad, and he hugged his pillow tighter. Everything he did with the Adlers reminded him of Mr. Stark and how much better it would be if the man were there with him.

He felt tiny paws press into his back and a small smile formed as another sob wracked his frame.

Opie was there… at least he hadn’t lost everyone yet.

He rolled over and grabbed Opie, hugging the cat to his chest. He pressed his face into his soft fur, and the kitten didn’t seem at all bothered by the wetness that began to cover him as a result.

“I love you Opie. And Mr. Stark does too. I promise he does. He’ll probably come get us soon. Then we can go see Uncle Rhodey, Uncle Agent, Uncle Happy, Ms. Pepper and JARVIS, and _everyone_. Don’t worry, Ms. Pepper said so.”

***

Three weeks seemed to be long enough to get Tony out of his funk. At least he hoped it was long enough… he hadn’t gotten himself drunk last night, so that was supposedly a good sign. He was kinda moody, but that was normal for him, so it couldn’t really mean anything.

He still missed Peter, of course, but he pressed those particular thoughts, and anything related, down into the deep dark pit of memories he’d been fighting to forget. It turned out that repressing a full two months of happiness, laughter and bonding was hard to do though. Try as he might, nearly everything he’d do throughout the day would remind him of _something_ about Peter.

Like when his new PA delivered his coffee that morning. It was sweet. It wasn’t sweet because he liked it that way. It was sweet because that’s the way Peter liked it. He’d let the kid have a couple sips of it in the morning before school, because it made him feel like a ‘big kid’. Tony had just never gotten around to telling his PA to change the order.

That was just one example.

He got used to the quiet again at least. He was able to get used to not having to quit whatever he was doing at 2:30 in the afternoon to be in time to run and pick Peter up from school. He got used to not having a set schedule for dinner every night too. He tossed out all the Kids menus from his menu drawer too. Though the first night he’d accidentally set the tablet for two rather than just scooping up the food he ordered and disappearing to the workshop for another binge as had done in the past… before Peter. He was over it now though… he didn’t even glance at the Dining table anymore. He didn’t watch Star Wars on Mondays, The Incredibles on Wednesdays, or Toy Story on Thursdays after dinner. He didn’t have to preset JARVIS for the Mystery Friday’s to cue what he actually wanted to watch either. He could watch whatever he wanted on whatever day, and it didn’t have to be PG either.

Then again, on the bad nights, he found himself sneaking up from the workshop or his bedroom to watch Toy Story all by himself on the Living Room floor, clutching the blanket he and Peter used to wrap themselves up in during their nightly marathons. He watched it despite how many times he had watched it and complained about it in the two months Peter had stayed with him.

He sorta missed having Opie accompany him to the office too. It seemed most of the employees he interacted with on a regular basis seemed to miss the hyperactive cat as well. He had become a highlight of every board meeting Tony attended, and he swore the stiff, grumpy old lady on the board looked upset when he waltzed into the room without Opie cuddled in his arms for the first time since he’d started bringing him. It had been much more entertaining for everyone to watch the adorable kitten scamper around the large table, shuffling people’s paperwork. Then the soft mewling when he had finally tuckered himself out.

And, really, all this had only gone on for two months. So, Tony honestly didn’t know why he was so attached. Why these habits were so ingrained into his mind. Pepper said it was likely his subconscious trying to latch onto the memories and moments revolving around domesticity and family; a thing Tony had always been deprived of as a child. It was a ridiculous insinuation, of course, and he just brushed it off at the time, but the harder he tried to forget about Peter, the more sense it made when it was clear he wasn’t going to be forgetting about the boy anytime soon.

***

“Mr. Stark, please,” Carl sighed for the fourth time, “you need to consider going to visit Peter. The media has been inquiring on whether you had decided to continue developing your relationship with him.”

“I’m _not_ going to use him to get more PR Carl!” Tony snarled angrily, slamming his fist on the desk. “I’ve played with his emotions enough. He’s not A TOY!”

“I understand sir,” Carl relented in a placating tone, “but considering the reaction Peter gave when you two said goodbye-”

“I didn’t say goodbye,” Tony snarled under his breath, spinning his chair to the side so his back was on display to Carl. “I didn’t say goodbye to him. Don’t say that.”

“Uhh, ahem.” Carl didn’t really know what he was supposed to say to that. “Well, perhaps this is your chance to say your goodbyes.”

“I’m done Carl!” Tony shouted angrily, voice wavering slightly. “I’ve been spending the past month trying to forget about it! I did a terrible thing getting this kid attached to me, I know. Just… just leave it alone. The kid’s better off forgetting I even exist.”

Carl’s mouth opened as if he were about to say something else, but it quickly snapped shut. His brows furrowed in both worry and confusion. He’d never seen his boss so put down and angry by anything in his whole time working for him.

“Take the day off Mr. Santiago,” Tony spoke coldly, “go spend time with your family. You’re dismissed.”

Tony didn’t turn back around to watch him leave, and Carl hesitated at the door, pondering what could have possibly set the usually stoic man off. He knew Mr. Stark and Peter had had a somewhat close relationship, but he never knew he felt so… bad about the whole thing.

So, out of curiosity, he ventured to Ms. Potts office, in hopes of finding some trustworthy answers before he went home for the day. He didn’t want to assume things if it was possible that his boss was just in a rare mood.

“Ms. Potts?” Carl called anxiously, knocking lightly on her door rather than bursting in as he was usually prone to do.

“What is it Carl?” Pepper replied instantly, staring down at the mess of papers spread out across her desk.

“Um, well, I just spoke with Mr. Stark…” Pepper looked up at him when he mentioned Tony, a worried furrow forming with her brows, “and-and he was acting somewhat off.”

“How so?”

“Well, he sort of snapped at me when I mentioned for him going to visit Peter. He-he’s been acting weird ever since he came back last week. Did-did something happen that I was unaware about?”

Pepper’s worried expression morphed into a sorrowful, understanding smile. “No, he’s just missing Peter. It was… It was really hard on him. It will probably take him another few months to recover from it. If that.”

“Oh-oh, I didn’t realize that they were that close. I mean… I knew they were somewhat close, but… I wasn’t informed on how deep their relationship was.”

“Well,” Pepper started, pausing thoughtfully, “it’s quite complicated. But, yes, Mr. Stark was very, very close with Peter. Giving him up was very hard on him, and he’s trying hard to forget about it. I hope he’ll be able to smile the same way at someone again the way he had smiled at Peter.” A wistful, hopeful smile spread across her face as she turned back to her papers.

Carl’s mouth fell open and his eyes widened in horror. “I-I-I if I had known I wouldn’t have pushed the adoptive family! I swear it Ms. Potts! I would have never pushed him as hard as I did. I would have definitely tried to convince PR to go the adoption route.”

“It’s okay Carl,” Pepper sighed, “he was already having doubts about being suitable enough to care for Peter. I think you just gave him that much more reason to finally give him up. Although, I do believe he would have made an excellent father to Peter.”

That didn’t seem to reassure the man in the least.

“I-I-I gotta go,” he stuttered, rushing out of the room with that stupid tablet tucked under his arm.

He didn’t know how he could have possibly missed his boss’ intense soft spot for the little boy. Maybe he was just blinded by the excitement from successfully improving the man’s image for the first time in a while. Or maybe he was really that oblivious to what was taking place right in front of him. He couldn’t believe he was so heartless! He watched as the boy screamed and cried to not be taken away and he just assumed that it was all a dramatization put on by the child! How could he think that? Peter was pure, innocent, and sweet. And Stark! He cried! Oh goodness how did he overlook that?

He had to fix this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so, I'm gonna let you guys have some input on the next chapter. 
> 
> Hypothetically... if Peter and Tony happen to reunite... how would you like it to be? I have most of the 'potential' before and after stuff done, but the actually, 'potential' being reunited after nearly a month... How should it go? I was feeling more like a teary, self-hating, but still love you kinda one. I don't know. You guys want Peter to be angry? Happy? Tony to cry? Just let me know... I need some of those creative juices right now lol.
> 
> But just remember that I might not be able to include your suggestion depending on how it fits with the overall introduction and conclusion. I have most of It figured out. This is just in case one of y'all is a much better story genius than I am... so yeah.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter even though it is kinda depressing :(  
> Thank you for reading!! I really appreciate all the support and comments!!


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I’m not his father!” Tony argued defiantly, voice faltering on the last word. “His father is _dead_. I’m not an idiot Pepper. That kid doesn’t love me. He’s blinded by a jumble of hero-worship and damsel-in-distress syndrome. He associates me with safety because I’m the first person that poor kid could trust after his family was killed… because of ME might I add. I was just the lucky bastard that saved him from a bad home… that’s it. I'm nothing special. He’ll be over me within the next month after he realizes I'm not worth the trouble.”
> 
> “But will _you_ be over it?” Pepper questioned harshly, glaring at him challengingly.
> 
> “See, that’s the thing Pepper,” He laughed humorlessly, “It’s not about me anymore. It’s about what’s best for Peter, and the best for him is with the Adlers. They’ll treat him right.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys... get ready for lots of tears and lots of fluff.

“What do you mean you want him back?!” Mrs. Adler cried out in frustration, throwing her hands in the air as she glared at the man standing in front of her. “Hasn’t Stark done enough to that poor baby already? Or has he suddenly decided that he hasn’t inflicted enough trauma?!”

“I’m so sorry Mrs. and Mr. Adler. I can only imagine what you two are going through,” Carl reassured softly with a slight nervous catch in his voice. “I made a very terrible mistake a month ago, and I’m trying to fix it-”

“Fix it?! How is dragging a poor innocent little boy back to the man that abandoned him fixing anything?!”

“Now, hang on Mya,” Mr. Adler coaxed calmly, reaching out his arm to his wife to grab onto her hand. “Think about Peter-”

“I am thinking about Peter!” She cried again, hot tears trailing down her face as she pressed a quivering hand to her mouth, in hopes it would help repress the sobs. “He’s-he’s-he’s already been through so much. I don’t want him to get hurt again.”

Mr. Adler reaches up to wipe away the tears with the pad of his thumb while he directs her to sit on the couch in the living room. “Hon, I don’t think Peter likes it here very much,” he begins quietly, cutting himself off while his wife frantically shakes her head in utmost disagreement. “He-he doesn’t sleep or eat Mya. He’s started failing his classes and picking fights with his classmates… the counselor says it’s due to severe separation anxiety after a major trauma… and it’s not looking like the behavior will be getting any better.”

“We’ll just have to work with him then,” the sobbing woman pleaded earnestly, “he let me read him a book last night. Don’t you remember? Maybe he’ll get better if he stayed.”

Mr. Adler casts his gaze down to their intertwined hands and shakes his head softly. “I don’t think so Mya. Kids like Peter… Kids who go through all the things Peter has… it’s hard for them to bounce back from these things. We learned this. We learned this in the Foster classes. You know that it’s very possible that Peter never quite gets over this if he stays here.”

“But Mrs. Hill said he was different! She always talked about how sweet he was even despite all the terrible things he’s been through. He’s such a good boy! We can’t just give up on him now. We can’t just hand him back to the man that did this to him.”

“Stark didn’t do anything,” Mr. Adler admitted sagely, “he just did what he thought was right for Peter. That’s all any parent can do… and now we have to make that choice too.”

Mrs. Adler didn’t say anything in response to that. She shook her head defiantly, squeezing her eyes together tightly so she didn’t have to look at him. Her husband turned away from her for a second, roping an arm across her shoulders for comfort while he looked over to the quiet man still standing by their front door. His ashamed gaze averted towards their wooden floor.

“Mr. Santiago,” Mr. Adler addressed, “Do you mind filling us in on your proposal? We won’t be agreeing to anything… but I think it’d be good for us to consider it, and I feel that it would be best to talk while Peter’s at his friend’s house.”

The man nodded stiffly and shuffled towards the couple in the living room, taking a seat in the chair adjacent to the couch.

“Yes-yes. Um… Mr. Stark doesn’t know that I’m here,” he began quietly. “He’s adamant about not seeing Peter again to avoid any negative effect it may have on Peter’s adjustment here; he’s positive that his influence was anything but good on Peter due to his past experience with his own father.”

“Then-then why are you here?” Mrs. Adler sobbed angrily, glaring at the man. “If Mr. Stark doesn’t even want him back, why do you need to get Peter’s hopes up?”

“Believe me, I don’t believe it’d be a good idea to get Peter’s hopes up… but I’ve spoken with Mrs. Hill to determine if this visit was even necessary… and I believe it is. My best interests, as of now, are Peter’s, and based off of my interactions with Mr. Stark and Peter, I feel that - if Mr. Stark agrees to it - Peter would best thrive with him.”

“Why? So you can just parade him in front of the press or something? So you can get your precious company some more good publicity. That’s all this was to begin with, wasn’t it?” Mrs. Adler accused.

“Yes, at first, for me, that’s all it was. But as I look back, I realize that Mr. Stark had already fallen in love with the boy before fostering was even on the table. He cares deeply for Peter despite what you may think… but I want to hear it from you. I don’t want to make the mistake of tearing Peter away from a happy home again if I can help it. If you truly believe that Peter can eventually feel happy here and thrive both intellectually and emotionally… then I’ll leave right now.”

“I-I-I…” Mrs. Adler’s eyes widened in panic, “I-I don’t know…”

***

So, Carl suggested they think about it, talk about it together, subtly question Peter about it to determine the boy’s feelings without giving away their underlying intentions.

Then, about a day or so later, Carl received a phone call from Mrs. Adler, informing him through her tears that they had finally come to a decision.

***

“Peter, honey,” Mrs. Adler cooed quietly, kneeling next to his bed to rub a hand long his small back… he’d had a pretty bad day at school again. “There’s someone here that would like to say hi to you.”

“Mr. Stark?” Peter questioned excitedly, jolting up from where he’d curled up on his bed after school to stare at Mrs. Adler with a wide grin, eyes sparkling with hope. It broke her heart, which only solidified her decision further.

“No, honey. Not exactly.”

Peter’s lip quivered pitifully, and he slowly lowered himself back onto the bed, pressing his face into the Star Wars plushie Mr. Stark had bought for him a week before he left. “I don’t want to see them then.”

“C’mon Peter,” she sighed, tugging gently at his arm. He stiffened in response and yanked his arm out of her grip, pushing her hand away with a threatening growl. It wasn’t anything new.

“Leave me alone!”

“If you’re not going to come out and see him, I’ll just have to send him in here then. He really wants to talk to you about something important.”

“I don’t care,” Peter growled out. He could feel his face already beginning to heat up at the strain to repress the tears and sobs… he’d cried enough already.

“Okay then,” Mrs. Adler sighed, leaving the room, shutting the door behind her before walking down the hall. She approached the three men in the Living Room with a sad smile on her face.

“I think you might want to go see him yourself. He’s pretty upset right now.”

The dark-skinned man stood abruptly from the couch, eyes hardening in both worry and determination. “You told him Uncle Rhodey was here?”

“Well… no,” Mrs. Adler admitted, “he didn’t really want to see anyone that wasn’t Mr. Stark.”

“I’m going to kill Tony,” Rhodey muttered under his breath as he quickly made his way down the hall, leaving the other three in his wake as he went to speak with his nephew. He would have visited sooner if he had had the choice.

“So, um, I’m really sorry that things ended up turning out like this,” Carl apologized when Rhodey was finally out of earshot. “We wouldn’t mind compensating you for your troubles. And like I said before, I’d hate to make the mistake of removing Peter from another loving home. So, you’re sure this would be in his best interest?” He clutched a small pile of papers in his hand, staring at the couple sitting side by side on the couch worriedly, as if they would suddenly change their mind.

“You do realize that _you’re_ the one that came to _us_ about this, right?” Mr. Adler interjected, raising his eyebrow suspiciously.

“Well, yes. I just want to be absolutely positive before removing Peter from his new home just to write one wrong. My best interests are in Peter as I said before, as are Colonel Rhodes and Ms. Potts’.”

Mrs. Adler nodded nervously, clutching her husband's hand. Her voice wavered with emotion when she spoke again. She had had plenty of time to think about it, cry about it, and second guess herself, but deep down she knew that Peter would never have the chance to be himself while under their roof, despite how much she wanted him to. “What-what will happen to Peter if Mr. Stark refuses to take him back? Will he come stay with us again? I-I don’t think it’d be a good idea to put him through this if there’s a potential for Mr. Stark turning him down again… he’s already lost so much as is.” Her shaking hands come to cover her mouth, eyes watering dangerously.

“Peter will be well taken care of, I assure you.” Carl smiled reassuringly. “If Mr. Stark refuses to take custody of Peter, both Colonel Rhodes and Ms. Potts have agreed to sign for joint custody over him. But I can almost guarantee you that Mr. Stark will be taking Peter back; he just needs a little more convincing. And… just in case, I believe it’d be best for you to bring Peter to the Tower yourselves. I think it would be easier for him, and it’ll keep him from assuming that Mr. Stark will be taking him in again… just as a precaution, of course.”

“O-okay. That sounds fair. Where-where should we sign?” Mrs. Adler nods shakily, looking down at the paper Carl placed on their coffee table.

“Right here.”

***

“Buddy? Hey,” Rhodey whispered softly when he pushed open the bedroom door softly. He caught a short glimpse of Peter’s small form slumped on the bed, curled around a stuffy as his little body shook through his tears.

His crying stopped abruptly, and his head snapped to the side to stare at the man standing in his doorway. His eyes were gleaming with tears as he looked at him, snot running down his nose, eyes puffy. “U-uncle Rhodey?”

“Yeah,” Rhodey laughed with relief, quickly approaching the bed as Peter struggled to scramble off the mattress. The man eagerly reached to meet him halfway, enveloping the boy in a strong, warm hug. “It’s me, Buddy. I’m sorry I couldn’t come see you sooner.”

Peter shook violently in his arms, his tiny fists grasping onto his ironed uniform.

“Please, please,” he sobbed pitifully, “please don’t make me stay here Uncle Rhodey. I wanna go home. Please take me home.”

Rhodey squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his teeth. Carl had made him promise not to get Peter’s hopes up… just in case Tony decided to be stupid again. He wanted to tell him… he wanted to so bad. He wanted to gather the boy in his arms, telling him everything was going to be alright as he marched them out of the house and back to the Tower so he could see that beautiful smile again. He couldn’t do that though… that wasn’t how these things worked...

“I-I’m sorry buddy. I-I can’t.”

At his words, Peter jerked away, pushing angrily at the arms wrapped around him, and shooting a scornful glare at the man with a quivering lip. His cheeks burn red with anger, which was only further defined by the bright shine of tears trailing down them.

“You liar,” he accused in a whisper, making it all the more painful. “You lied.”

Rhodey’s face fell and immediately reached for the boy once more to pull him back into a hug. Only for Peter to push away further. His glare didn’t soften, and his tears didn’t stop flowing from his eyes.

“You-you said it wasn’t bad I said that! You said Mr. Stark wouldn’t think I was being bad! You said you’d come visit me! You-you-”

“I _did_ Pete,” Rhodey plead desperately, leaning in close to him, “I’m here now. I came to visit you just like I promised I would.”

“But you still lied!” Peter accused again, anger draining from his face, only to be replaced by a trembling lip and more tears. “You said Mr. Stark wouldn’t be mad at me, but he is!”

Rhodey’s heart dropped into his stomach and he felt the sting of tears behind his own eyes. He’d never hated his best friend more than he did in this moment, and he desperately wished that everything would just turn out right for once, because if it didn’t… he’s pretty sure he’d be convicted for kidnapping this sweet, innocent kid and disappearing off the face of the Earth. “He’s not mad at you buddy.”

“Then why did he send me away?” Peter questioned earnestly, staring pleadingly at the man. He wanted answers to the questions he chanted at night as he rocked back and forth on his bed, begging God through his tears and sobs to tell him what he did that was so wrong. “Why doesn’t he love me anymore if he’s not mad?”

Rhodey felt his throat quiver and he swallowed around the hard rock that had formed as a result. His eyes were red now, he just knew it. They already felt swollen and tired.

“Oh Peter,” he choked, reaching out for him again. That time Peter didn’t push him away. “He loves you more than you can ever imagine.”

***

“Pepper, _please_ ,” Tony groaned dramatically, “would you just give me a minute. Gosh. You act like I’ve never kept Board Members waiting before.” He played with something on the computer, clicking the buttons on his mouse for a few more minutes before Pepper’s nerves finally got the best of her.

“Tony, I need you to listen to me.” She instructs firmly, voice quivering with emotion with her hands already shaking nervously. Nobody was for certain how all of this was going to pan out. All they could do was hope…she could only hope that her boss loved Peter just as much as she thought he did.

“Pepper,” Tony addressed suspiciously, narrowing his eyes and slowly moving his gaze from his computer screen to the woman standing in front of his desk, “what’s going on?”

“Before I tell you, I need you to promise you’ll keep an open mind about it.”

Tony’s glare only hardened, and she gulped anxiously.

“P-Promise me Tony.”

He lifted his chin defiantly and crossed his arms over his chest. His nose twitched faintly, and she knew she wouldn’t be getting anything out of him this way. He’d been even less agreeable the past month than he was before Peter.

“Okay, fine… Carl’s made a proposal-”

“I’m not going to see Peter. I thought we’ve already discussed this. I don’t need to stir the pot while the kid’s adjusting to a normal life. He’s probably already over me; he’s a kid. Kids bounce back. It’s what they do Pepper. Stop bugging me about it. The answer is NO.” He growled abruptly.

“Tony-” Pepper implored.

“I said NO!” Tony shouted, standing from his desk, and slamming his fist down on the wooden surface. “That kid doesn’t need me anymore! He never did. Do you not understand that? I shouldn’t have let him get so attached as is.”

“That’s a lie and you know it,” Pepper growled out angrily. “Do you not understand that both me and Rhodey have been getting phone calls nearly every day from that poor child. He _cries_ for you Tony. He _apologizes_ for calling you ‘Daddy’ because he thinks it’s HIS FAULT you gave him up! He thinks you’re mad at him. He _promises_ to be good! Tony, I don’t think you understand how much Peter loves you and depends on you. He’s not mad at you; he’s mad at himself and that is NOT okay. Whether you like it or not, YOU are his father now, Tony, and I won’t let you push off this responsibility any longer. It’s killing you! And it’s killing Peter.”

“I’m not his father!” Tony argued defiantly, voice faltering on the last word. “His father is _dead_. I’m not an idiot Pepper. That kid doesn’t _love_ me. He’s blinded by a jumble of hero-worship and damsel-in-distress syndrome. He associates me with safety because I’m the first person that poor kid could trust after his family was killed… because of ME might I add. I was just the lucky bastard that saved him from a bad home… that’s it. I’m nothing special He’ll be over me within the next month after he realizes I'm not worth the trouble.”

“But will _you_ be over it?” Pepper questioned harshly, glaring at him challengingly.

“See, that’s the thing Pepper,” He laughed humorlessly, “It’s not about me anymore. It’s about what’s best for Peter, and the best for him is with the Adlers. They’ll treat him right.”

“The Adlers seem to disagree with you.” Pepper responded tersely, fixing him with a hardened glare of her own while she crossed her arms over her chest.

“What are you talking about?” Tony seethed quietly.

“They called Carl a couple days ago… apparently they had spoken the day prior about how Peter’s been adjusting. He transferred the line to me.” Pepper paused to gage his reaction. The man paled at her words, and she hoped that was a sign that maybe she was getting through to him. “I talked for almost an hour with a sobbing Mrs. Adler. Peter’s a mess and she’s worried about him. He won’t sleep, he won’t eat, he refuses for help after his nightmares… He SITS there Tony, rocking himself back and forth on his bed, sobbing while the Adlers stand there helplessly because he’ll scream if they come anywhere near him. His grades are worse than they’ve ever been, and he’s starting to come home from school with bruises Tony… He’s talking back. He’s kicked Mr. Adler twice already, and he shouts at them… you and I both know that that’s not our Peter.”

“See what I mean,” Tony’s voice shook with emotion as he tried desperately to piece together an argument, “he only spent two months with me, and he’s already turned into a self-destructive brat.”

“I don’t think you’re understanding Tony,” Pepper whispered softly.

“Carl and I have both talked to Peter’s case worker as well… She says that this kind of behavior is typical for grieving children… but even after his Aunt and Uncle died, he had never acted out like this. The school psychologist said that he’s been experiencing extreme separation anxiety, only accentuated by his trauma, and if he doesn’t start to bounce back soon... -”

“Don’t,” Tony interrupted breathlessly, holding up a hand to her and bowing his head to stare at his shoes. “Just don’t.”

But Pepper ignored him and kept on going. She knew she was getting through to him.

“Carl thinks his choice in pressuring you to sign over Peter was wrong, and he’s guilt-ridden over it, and it’s obvious that the employees are missing your little tag-along… Everyone loved Peter, Tony.”

“I said _stop_ ,” Tony breathed, collapsing in his chair to cradle his head in his hands.

Pepper didn’t stop. She needed him to understand that what he had done was wrong.

“The Adlers signed documents yesterday afternoon, promising to revoke their rights as Peter’s guardians as soon as you agree to take him. They feel that Peter will do better off elsewhere, specifically with _you_.”

“Pepper,” Tony groaned, “I _can't_. I can't be a good Dad. It's not fair to him. I-I-I can’t… Stark men can’t be fathers. It’s been proved generation after generation.”

“I don't think you give yourself enough credit Tony.” Pepper sighed, wringing her hands together nervously.

“ _I_ think you’re giving me too much,” Tony snapped right back, turning his glare back onto her.

Pepper didn’t say anything. Her stoic expression returned as she glared down at Tony.

“The Adlers are circling the Tower as we speak. They’re waiting to bring Peter up to see you, and you’re going to be in that conference room and you’re going to give him the biggest hug you’ve ever given anybody. You’re going to tell him that none of this was his fault, and that you love him more than anything… because I know you do…. You have thirty minutes to decide if you want to adopt him or not. If not, Rhodey and I have already agreed to adopt him ourselves, because I’ll be damned if I don’t do what I can to make sure Peter sees you every day. Whether it be as his Uncle or his father is up to you.”

Tony’s glare softened for a moment before he stood from his chair, wiping angrily at his eyes and storming from the room with a newfound determination.

“Alright. You win, I’ll adopt him. But if I screw this kid up, I’m blaming you.”

Pepper grinned, breathing heavily in relief as she watched her boss’ retreating figure. “Fair enough.”

***

“Ms. Mya, why are we here?” Peter questioned warily as he stared up at the familiar sight of the looming Tower. He could feel the sting of tears start to press up behind his eyes again as hope bubbled in his chest. He couldn’t let himself get too excited, though. He knew it’d only hurt more afterwards. So, he put on his big boy face and took a deep breath, puffed out his chest confidently and gripped the woman’s hand tightly as she and Mr. Adler silently led him through the front doors.

Maybe he was there to see Pepper… or maybe they needed one more picture.

He had mixed feelings of being in his home again. His gut swirled anxiously in his stomach, and fear pounded strongly against his chest. He-he didn’t want to get his hopes up like he’d been doing every time there was a knock at the front door of Mr. and Mrs. Adlers’ home. He couldn’t assume that Mr. Stark wanted him back anymore, despite knowing deep down in his gut, with an unwavering certainty, that Mr. Stark would eventually come and rescue him just like he’d done in the past.

Mr. Adler had at some point reached to grab onto his other hand as the three of them silently made their way through the lobby. People stared at him in surprise, and Peter hated that he was used to the looks. The couple led him towards the elevator without uttering a word even when he repeatedly asked various questions revolving around ‘why are we here’ and what are we doing’. He saw Mrs. Adler crying too. Actually, he’d heard her crying the past couple of nights in her room, and he didn’t know what to feel. Should he be excited? Scared? Worried?

The ride in the elevator wasn’t much different from their hike across the lobby floor. The fear was still gnawing at his chest and worry clouded his thoughts. He had no idea what was going on, and his brain just wouldn’t work!

Then… the elevator doors opened, and he was met with a sight he had seen nearly every day for a whole two months. As much as he would have liked it to be, it wasn’t the penthouse. It was the next best thing: office floor, bustling with familiar faces busily rushing every which way to get their day’s work done. A tiny smile slowly inched up the corners of his mouth as he silently recalled the conference rooms he had sat outside after school, coloring intently or doing homework, while Mr. Stark had meetings, or the hiding places he’d hide at while playing hide and go seek with his Uncle Rhodey when he came for a visit.

A few people smiled at him and waved, and he was barely able to smile back… it’d been a long time since he’d used those muscles, and it felt kinda weird now.

Mrs. Adler tightened her hold on his hand while she asked one of the passing employees where Conference Room C was. Peter tugged on her hand, interrupting with a small voice, because he knew where that was! “I know where that is. I can show you.”

Mrs. Adler forced a smile while she looked down at him, and Peter led his foster parents through the bustling mess of people, occasionally faltering to whisper out a surprised ‘hi’ when an employee greeted him with a pleasant smile. Eventually, they were standing outside Conference Room C - one of the few conference rooms without glass partitions. The nerves only grew as he stood outside the door with no knowledge of what, or who, stood behind it. A saddened hope settled at the back of his mind, wishing for it to be Mr. Stark. Yet, a muddled dread contradicting that hope at the thought of having to see him again. It was a new feeling, and he wasn’t sure how to decipher it. Then, suddenly… he felt an all-encompassing instinct to run far, far away. Mr. and Mrs. Adler’s grips were too tight on him though, as if they knew what he was thinking, and they pushed open the door.

***

Tony was by no means ready to see Peter again… at least mentally.

He paced back and forth in the conference room while he waited for the Adlers to bring up Peter, subtly wringing his hands together to maintain some form of professional aloofness. Whether it was a sad attempt to trick himself, or the others around them, he didn’t know. All he knew is that if he were trying to trick the others it wasn’t really working. He wasn’t sure if he was nervous, scared, happy, sad, upset? He had no idea, because his mind was just a muddled mess of ‘what if’s and outrageous, nightmarish scenarios that could occur.

No matter how many times Pepper, Rhodey, Happy, Phil, Carl, heck, even Mrs. Hill, assured him that everything would be fine and there was no need for him to worry, he still did. Phil had even agreed not to inform Fury about his intent to adopt Peter, which, wow, sure did take a lot of stress off of him. But he was still jittery.

They must have taken that as a bad thing, because they were all spread out through the large conference room, all obviously sharing the same look of hope on their face that Tony wouldn’t freak out and make the stupid decision to abandon Peter again.

Pft. As if?

Been there; done that. It was anything but pleasant for either party. Sure, he had his doubts about being a father, but he had Pepper, and his friends, and he’s sure that Google would become an extremely helpful friend over the next few years as well. Mrs. Hill had even reassured him with a kind smile, explaining that all first-time fathers had absolutely no idea what they were doing. So, yeah, that helped a little too. His mind was made up, and he very rarely changed his mind at the last minute.

So, of course, the set of court-approved adoption papers Mrs. Hill had brought along with her, sat spread across the long table, taunting him.

You know… maybe that feeling in his gut was uncertainty. He was always so confident in decision making he’s not really sure what it felt like to be unsure about something. Rhodey said it was a good thing he’s being so worried about the whole ‘Dad’ thing, because that means he’s gonna try even harder to do things right, and he could see the logic in that…

_Oh god, he’s gonna be a Dad!_

And with that final panicked thought, the large set of double doors released a echoing click and began the slow process of opening. He could feel his heart stutter briefly in his chest before stopping completely. His breath caught in his throat and he could feel the sweat pooling like puddles in his hands. He didn’t know why he was so nervous… it was just Peter.

Then, one seconds later, he was met with the sight of his favorite curly haired kid, grasping onto the hands of Mr. and Mrs. Adler. The boy’s eyes were red and anxious, defined by the large purple bags beneath them. Their eyes locked and Tony’s mind was immediately filled with a deep sense of relief. The tension from the past month just snapped… because there he was. There Peter was. His soon to be son.

That relief was short lived though. The Adlers coaxed a reluctant Peter into the room further and Tony found the worry crawling back up his throat as Peter stared up at him with anguished eyes and a quivering lip. Tony moved forward after he regained control of his bodily functions. The recently developed instinct to protect and comfort overshadowed the doubt and screamed at him to do something. So, he made a move to kneel in front of him.

“Hey buddy,” He choked out through a smile.

It was too late though. Peter grew horrified as he got closer and his eyes widened in a hysteric panic. He ripped away violently from his old foster parents. Throwing himself every which way to escape their grip, growing more panicked as Tony grew closer and closer, whimpering like a scared puppy as he watched Tony approach with wide eyes.

It broke his heart, and he had to stop in his tracks… Peter was scared of him. Peter didn’t want to see him. He didn’t want to make Peter scared.... He knew this was a bad idea.

Then he was gone. Peter tore away from the two adults and fled from the room with tears beginning to pour down his cheeks.

“Peter!”

His eyes widened in panic as he watched the child run out the room. Mrs. Adler looked hysterical as well, staring at the door with a gaping mouth as if she couldn’t believe Peter had just done that.

He turned to the other occupants in the room for some sort of instruction, because he had absolutely no idea what to do. Of course, his friends were no help. They seemed just as surprised and panicked as he and Mrs. Adler were, but thankfully Mrs. Hill was there to help.

“Go!” She urged emphatically with a sad smile, waving her hands towards the door Peter just left through.

It didn’t take any more convincing on Tony’s part before he jumped into action, flying past a now sobbing Mrs. Adler and chasing after his kid. He wasn’t going to be giving him up again without a fight. Not after he’d already made his final decision.

He stumbled from the room in a frantic mess, whipping his head around the open office space to find where Peter had ran off to. He ignored the attention he received from his employees, but he accepted the help when a few pointed in the direction towards the elevator to indicate where Peter had headed.

He took off sprinting, dodging computer carts, interns carrying tall stacks of paper, and secretaries delivering coffee before he finally spotted the familiar head of curly brown hair scampering and stumbling across the floor. Tony gained some ground on him and soon, a path cleared to Peter as the employees veered out of his way, and he picked up his pace, mentally noting to give everyone on that floor a raise.

“Peter! Stop,” He shouted. Peter’s head whipped around to look at him, and he saw the betrayal on his face as the tears fell down his blotchy cheeks. Then, the boy seemed to realize that he wouldn’t be making it to the elevator before Tony caught up with him, so he veered around a corner in a last-ditch attempt to escape the man, detouring into a secluded hallway that led to a messy storage room.

“Peter!” Tony shouted once more as he skidded around the corner, into the hall. “Peter, hey.”

He reached out towards Peter and grabbed a hold of his arm tightly halting him midstep in his determined sprint. Tony fell to a knee in front of him as he tugged the boy closer, expecting Peter to fall into his arms with a hug like he always used to do. But of course, it wasn’t that easy.

“No!” Peter screamed through a mess of tears, swatting at Tony’s face blindly and tugging at his arm to free himself from the tight grip. Tony winced and turned his head away to dodge Peter’s fervent attack, attempting to adjust his grip so the kid couldn’t get away from him again. Peter continued screaming, throwing his hands to land hits along the man’s face and neck as Tony continuously tried drawing him into a desperate hug, knowing it would calm him immediately.

“Hey,” he whispered softly in an attempt to soothe the boy, “stop. Stop it.”

“No,” he cried, “you lied to me!” Peter was finally able to rip his arm away from Tony, landing one last good hit on the man’s cheek before spinning on his heel to take off again, but he stumbled. He almost fell flat on his face, but Tony’s arms were quicker. They flew out to wrap around his waist and pulled the boy close to his chest before he could fall.

“Hey,” he breathed out, wincing as Peter started screaming and hitting again, landing a rather good hit on his nose, “it’s okay.”

He hugged the kid tighter, repositioning so he could pin the flying limbs to the boy’s side. He breathed heavily, squeezing his eyes shut. “It’s okay. I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s not,” Peter sobbed, finally giving up on his fight and going limp in the man’s arms.

Tony hugged him close to his chest, breathing heavily as he pressed his hand to the back of the kid’s head, cradling it close to the side of his neck. Peter’s arms slowly wrapped over his shoulders loosely, continuing his chant of soft ‘no’s.

“Hey, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. It’s okay now.” Tony breathed out, turned his face to press his nose into the side of Peter’s head and squeezing his eyes shut. Hating the fact that his kid’s soft hair no longer smelled like the usual Watermelon shampoo he used to buy for him. It smelled like peaches now.

“You lied to me. You said I’d be happy without you,” Peter murmured through his cries, clinging to the man’s jacket tightly as he slowly stood from where he had knelt on the ground.

“I know,” Tony’s voice quivered as he rubbed his hand along Peter’s back, using his other arm to support the boy’s weight. “I know, I’m sorry.”

He felt Peter’s shaky breaths against his neck as the sobs slowly began to die down.

“I was so sad,” he whimpered pitifully, burying his face against Tony’s neck as he sobbed again. “I missed you.”

Tony felt his own lip begin to quiver and he closed his eyes again to savor the moment. “I missed you too,” he choked out, sounding almost like a desperate whine as his voice cracked halfway through his admission. “I missed you so much.”

Peter’s arms tightened around him and Tony let out a shaky breath. He opened his eyes for a moment and glanced around the mostly empty hall they had found themselves in. Bless those few poor souls trying their hardest to act like they weren’t paying attention. He moved forward and escaped into a secluded conference room with no windows, which meant no prying eyes... and that’s when he finally broke down.

“Buddy, I’m so sorry,” he whispered, collapsing in a chair with Peter cradled in his lap.

Peter didn’t say anything, so neither did Tony.

Then, when Peter’s sobs had finally died down, he slowly started to pull away from the embrace, wiping roughly at his eyes and looking at Tony’s distressed face. Tony reached up to help him, brushing away the tears with his thumb before cradling the side of the boy’s face in his large hand. Peter leaned into the touch.

“I promise I’ll be good,” Peter pleaded in a whisper, “I’ll be so, so good. I won’t ever push Flash again, I-I-I won’t get bad grades no more. I-I’ll stop-stop asking for McDonalds for dinner. I’ll try really, _really_ hard to stop having nightmares. I-I won’t ever hit you ever again. And-and I promise never to ever _ever_ call you Daddy again. I promise Mr. Stark.”

Tony’s face paled. Pepper had warned him; Rhodey had warned him… they said that Peter blamed himself for what happened, but it didn’t quite sink in until Peter admitted it out loud with a quivering voice and tears pouring down his cheeks.

“No,” Tony replied sternly, wiping his face clean of any residue tears. He reached out and gripped onto Peter’s upper arms firmly. “I don’t want you to _ever_ think that any of this was your fault, because it wasn’t. Do you understand me? Whenever you have a nightmare I will always be there. It’s okay to have nightmares, it’s okay to defend yourself. You can make mistakes, it’s okay. You can make more mistakes than anybody and I’ll still be so proud of you Peter, because you are so, so good. Do you hear me? You did _nothing_ wrong.”

Peter’s eyebrows quirked slightly in confusion as Tony settled him with a stern glare. He reached up to wipe at the tears pouring from his eyes, sniffling slightly.

“Then, why-why did you let them take me? Why did you leave?” He whispered shakily, his chest spasming slightly as he held back the sobs. Tony moved his hand back to Peter’s cheek to wipe away the tears falling down the boy’s face.

“Because I thought I was bad for you,” he admitted, expression softening as he locked eyes with the boy. He needed to make sure Peter understood. He couldn’t let Peter blame himself for something that was Tony’s fault.

Peter’s chin quivered and he squeezed his eyes shut as a stressed smile slowly grew twisted across the strain in his face. Happy sobs fell from his mouth, pushing through the tight smile of relief before collapsing back against Tony’s chest.

“But I’m going to do everything I can to make sure I’m not, okay?”

***

Eventually, when Tony was able to recompose himself, they make their way back to Conference Room C. Tony carried Peter across the large office floor, threatening his group of employees angrily when he saw a few of them start to sneak their phones out. He’s sure the internet would be absolutely _thrilled_ to learn about their reunion, but he couldn’t risk it. He didn’t want anyone to know… no one needed to know. He never wants to put Peter through something like that ever again, and thankfully everyone, including Carl agreed profusely with his decision.

“I don’t want to see anything about me or Peter anywhere online,” he calls out loudly without even looking in their direction. “If I do, I won’t hesitate to fire your asses and sue for far more than your worth… put your phones away and get back to work.”

Peter curled in closer to him as he shouted at them, but the problem was taken care of.

“No more cameras, buddy. Not anymore,” he whispered softly into his hair as he marched the rest of the way across the room.

He threw open the doors to the conference room and was greeted with various anxious expressions. Both Pepper and Rhodey jump out of their seats as soon as he enters the room to approach him and Peter, touching and apologizing and questioning if everything was alright. Peter said hi to both of them, but not much else, preferring to focus all his attention on the long overdue hug. Tony thought it was funny to see his two best friends fuss over his soon-to-be son.

“Alright, that’s enough,” Tony laughed, pushing them away gently, “let’s get this all done and over with so me and Pete can go and catch up on all our lost time.”

Peter peaked out from his hiding place for just a moment as Tony took a seat between Mrs. Hill and Carl, in front of a large arrangement of papers.

“You’re going to make sure this doesn’t end up on public record, right?” Tony questioned the social worker firmly, with Pepper’s supportive hand squeezing his shoulder. “I don’t want word getting out about this to anyone. Especially not the press.”

“Of course, Mr. Stark!” Mrs. Hill sounded offended at his insinuation. “You and Peter’ privacy is very important, especially considering the unusual circumstances.”

“Good,” Tony sniffed, patting Peter’s back rhythmically. “Now where do I gotta sign?”

Mrs. Hill jumped right into the pile of papers with a wide smile on her face as she shuffles them around to look for the sheet.

“First you need to sign the temporary guardianship papers so that you remain responsible for Peter while the adoption papers are finalized. It takes a couple days for-”

“A-Adoption?” Peter questioned immediately, jolting away the comfy pillow he’d made of Tony’s chest for a moment to stare at his case worker with an open mouth and wide eyes before turning to look back at Tony.

“Yeah, Pete,” Tony smiled gently, rubbing his back, “I’m never letting go of you ever again.”

“But-but,” Peter faltered, snapping his gaze over to Mr. and Mrs. Adler standing idly at the other end of the table.

Tony’s excitement was slowly filled with panic. Out of all the possible scenarios he had thought up, this was one of the few he had disregarded as ridiculous.

“Unless… you don’t want me to-” Before he could all get the words out, Peter was turning back to look at him with a wide, ear-splitting grin. The words hadn’t quite registered in his young brain and he grabbed onto Tony’s lapels excitedly.

“Like-like a real Dad? Not a pretend Dad anymore? You wanna be my real Daddy?”

Tony bit his lip to try and hide the goofy grin threatening to break across his face.

“Yeah Pete, I wanna be your Dad.”

Peter’s smile didn’t break once.

***

After the papers were signed, and after the Adlers signed one more document to officially revoke their rights over Peter, it was time to go. Happy left to get the car ready in order to follow the Adlers home so he pick up Peter’s stuff and bring Opie home. Peter had made a big deal of Opie needing to be there with them as soon as possible, because apparently the cat had really missed Tony too. Tony couldn’t help but laugh at that one before pressing a loving kiss to his kid’s forehead.

“Pete, why don’t you say goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Adler?” Tony suggested after it was all over and done with, approaching the couple with Peter still wrapped in his arms.

Peter turned to look at them with a bright, happy smile, and the couple smiled back at him. Then, with one hand fisted tightly onto Tony’s shirt to be sure the man wouldn’t let go of him, Peter reached out to hug Mrs. Adler with one arm, wrapping it around her neck and whispering a thank you into her ear. He did the same with Mr. Adler before retreating into Tony’s embrace again, smiling shyly at them and waving goodbye while hiding against the man’s shirt. Tony smiled softly and shook both their hands, thanking them profusely for being so understanding of the whole situation.

“And, maybe…” he caught onto Mrs. Adler’s quivering lips and desperate attempts to hold back her tears. “I mean, if you’re interested… I could really use a babysitter once in a while. I’d rather not hire someone Peter doesn’t know. I’ll pay you well too-”

“Yes! Of course,” Mrs. Adler nods emphatically, pressing her hand to her mouth. “We both love Peter so much.”

“Good,” Tony smiled too. Waving goodbye to them as they left the room.

Then Mrs. Hill had left with a promise to get everything taken care of as soon as she could. Peter hugged her bye just as he had with the Adlers, and Mrs. Hill smiled at him, telling him how proud she was of the happy, brave boy he had grown into. Tony smiled and shook her hand before she left.

“Sir?” Carl piped up anxiously, as soon as Mrs. Hill had left the room. Tony turned to him and raised his eyebrows curiously. “I’d just like to say sorry for all that I’ve put you and Peter through.”

Tony smiled at him kindly. “I’d say you more than made up for it. You may have influenced me to make one of the biggest mistakes of my life, but I think that gave me the kick in the butt I needed to finally realize how much I needed this little rascal.”

Carl’s smile was warm as he watched his boss press a loving kiss to his new son’s head.

“So, why don’t you go ahead and give yourself a nice raise for me… or get Pepper to do it. I’ll also need the entire Tower staff to sign strict NDA’s regarding Peter, also. I don’t need anyone blabbing about Peter’s adoption.”

“Of course, sir. I’ll get that taken care of right away. Thank you.” Carl nodded enthusiastically, grinning widely.

“No,” Tony smiled back, “thank _you_ Mr. Santiago.”

Then, with that, Tony left the room with Peter in his arms, heading to the elevator to meet Rhodey and Pepper up in the penthouse.

“So,” Tony grinned, looking down at the mop of curly hair, “I was thinking a movie…”

“Yeah!” Peter shouted excitedly, leaning back in the embrace to look at the man’s face. “What movie?”

“Well, it’s Mystery Friday. So, whatever you want Cubby.”

The elevator dings and the doors swished open to let them out while Peter continued to mull over the decision.

“It’s nice to have you back Peter,” JARVIS announced as soon as they entered the living room.

“JARVIS! Hi!” Peter squeals, smiling so wide it must have hurt.

Pepper was off to pop some popcorn and Tony walked over to take a seat next to Rhodey relaxing on the couch. Peter scrambled off his lap for a moment after they sat down to fetch their blanket thrown over the arm of the couch (Tony remembered using it last night), carrying it back over to Tony and plopping down in his lap just like he used to do. Tony grinned as he accepted the blanket from Peter and draped it over the both of them, tucking Peter in snuggly. It warmed his heart to know that everything was back to normal and Peter was back here with him.

“Made a decision yet buddy?” He asked curiously as Peter dramatically thought of his decision, tapping his finger on his chin as he leaned back into Tony.

“Shh. Be patient Daddy. Choosing a movie is a very, very serious decision.”

Tony’s heart stuttered at the title flowing so smoothly from his kid’s mouth as if it were the most natural thing in the world. He doesn’t think he’ll ever get used to that fluttering feeling in his stomach, and he _knows_ he’ll never get tired of that wave of happiness that follows it.

He caught Rhodey’s smug grin beside him and he rolled his eyes, wrapping his arms around Peter’s waist to pull his back snuggly against his chest, because he’d been so deprived of these cuddles for the past month and he was so happy to finally have them back.

“Ms. Pepper!” Peter shouted excitedly when the woman reappeared only moments later with a couple buckets of popcorn, “what movie do you think we should watch?”

Pepper’s smile grew as she gracefully falls onto the couch directly next to Tony and Peter, maybe just a bit closer than she would have sat before.

“Well,” she hummed, “how about Finding Nemo?”

Tony scoffed at the suggestion. “Honey, please, you’re gonna make me and Pete sit through a depressing father-son movie after-”

Peter seemed indifferent, squirming in Tony’s lap to look at the pair, focusing on a much more interesting part of that conversation.

“Honey?” He asked curiously, eyes wide, “do you like-like Ms. Pepper now, too, Daddy? That’s what my Uncle Ben used to call my Aunt May, and he said it’s because he loved her so much. You love Ms. Pepper?”

Tony pauses to look down at Peter, risking a panicked glance at Pepper to gauge her reaction, but Peter, of course, is oblivious to the social nuances and the absolute social atrocity he just raised.

“You two like-like each other!” He shouted happily, his entire body bouncing up and down in his excitement. “That means you’re gonna be my Mama now Ms. Pepper? Cuz you’re gonna marry my Daddy?”

Tony was choking. There was really no other way to describe the sounds coming out of his mouth. Rhodey was laughing hysterically. But Pepper, being the wonderful woman she was, remained calm and collected just as she always was while she reached out to comb a hand through Peter’s hair.

“No, I don’t plan on marrying your Daddy anytime soon Pete, but I’d be honored to be your Mama,” she smiled warmly.

Peter grinned so big, it nearly split his entire face in half.

His cheeks reddened slightly, and he shyly looked down at his lap, leaning his back against his dad again. “This is sooo cool,” he whispered, “now I have a Daddy, a Mama, and sooo many Uncles.” He turned to look at Rhodey contemplatively. “You’re my favorite though Uncle Rhodey, right after my Uncle Ben.”

Rhodey grinned at the compliment and poked Peter playfully in the side to express his appreciation. Peter giggled and swatted the hand away.

Tony bit down on his lip and dropped his head to press his face onto the top of Peter’s head, reaching up a hand to comb through the soft bangs on Peter’s forehead. He kisses the top of his head and smiles as he pulls his face back to run his hand along through the rest of his hair.

“Yeah, Pete. That’s pretty stinkin awesome, isn’t it?”

He didn’t cry. Nope. There was no crying at all…

“Cue up Finding Nemo JARVIS,” he announced after clearing his throat loudly, dropping his head to press one more kiss to his kid’s head. That time Peter craned his neck back to look up at him, reaching his hand up to pat the side of his face lovingly.

“Yes, sir.”

He didn’t cry.

***

Halfway through the movie Happy entered the room with a mewling kitten in his arms.

“Opie!” Peter shouted loudly, whipping his head around when he heard the familiar meow. Happy laughed and approached the couch to deposit the animal into the boy’s waiting arms.

“Thank you so much Uncle Happy.” Peter grinned, hugging the cat close to his face.

Happy dropped onto the couch beside Rhodey, kicking his feet up on the coffee table to relax as the movie continued to play.

“Hey, Opie, guess who’s here,” Peter whispered conspiratorially to the kitten. Then, he lifted the cat up in the air, craning his neck back, the back of his head pressing into Tony’s chest firmly, so he could watch with amusement as he pushed the kittens face into Tony’s nose. “It’s Daddy. He missed you so much Opie.”

Tony couldn’t help but smile, reaching up a hand to pet the animals head. His heart was having a hard time keeping up with Peter and all his heartbreaking sentiments. He didn’t know how he was able to give up the kid in the first place.

“Watch the movie Cubby,” Tony crooned, flattening his palm on the kid’s chest to pat him lovingly.

“Kay, Daddy,” Peter responded innocently, lowering the kitten back into his arms and returning his attention to the movie.

Yeah… Tony was definitely going to have some serious heart problems the next few years.

***

Peter fell asleep on his lap nearly the instant the movie ended, and Tony smiled down at him in amusement. Then he looked at his friends on either side of him and smiled. Happy and Rhodey were engrossed in a quiet argument on his left side, something about the movie, and Pepper sat on his right.

“Hey, Pep,” he greeted goofily, reaching out his right hand to grab onto hers. Pepper looked at him with raised eyebrows and a small smirk.

“What Tony?” She asked, trying her best to fake exasperation… but Tony knew better.

“Y’know, I can’t help but think about what Pete said earlier,” he whispered softly, leaning his head to the side to rest on the back of the couch while he looked at her.

“Yeah? What part of it?” Pepper asked, looking all innocent as if she didn’t know exactly what he was insinuating.

“Well, Pete needs a mom, and I’m happy it’s you... but y’know,” he trails off, grinning mischievously, “Dads need some love too.”

“Very funny Tony.” Pepper laughed softly and rolled her eyes, making a small attempt to let go of Tony’s hand, but he just tightened his grip. She from their intertwined hands to his face in confusion.

Tony looked at her, studying her face. “I’m serious Pep. I don’t think I’d ever be able to love someone as much as I love you.” He could hear her small gasp and that just strengthened his resolve. He might as well get all the hard things out of the way today, and this was something he’d been meaning to do for years. “I think about that night on the roof all the time… and I realized some time ago that I never want to kiss anyone else but you ever again.”

He paused when Peter snuffled softly in his lap, turning his head down to look at him.

“And you love Peter. You helped me see that I needed him, and that I could help him… So, I just want you to think about it. We can just take things slow if you want. I just- I didn’t realize how much I needed a family until Peter… and I think… I think you’ve always meant to be part of my family Pep. I want us to be a family.”

He poured out his heart to her, and he hoped that was enough. Now all he had to do was wait, because Pepper was anything but a rash decision maker. He squeezed her hand once in reassurance more before letting go. He leaned over to press a short lingering kiss to her cheek then stood up from the couch. Pepper wiped at her eyes quickly and shook herself out of her surprised stupor, then scooped Opie out of Peter’s arms. Tony smiled and adjusted the kid so he was cradled gently against his chest like an oversized infant and headed towards his room to put him to bed.

JARVIS had kindly turned the bedside lamp on for him and he placed Peter down softly on the bed after pulling the comforter and sheet back. He smoothed away some hair from his forehead, and Peter blinked his eyes open tiredly at the action.

“Hey Bubba,” Tony smiled, combing back his curls, “go back to sleep.”

Peter yawned widely, smiling goofily up at the man. Tony sat on the side of the bed, placing his hand on the other side of the lump of Peter’s small body beneath the covers to brace himself as he leaned over his kid to press a soft kiss to his forehead.

Peter giggled at the familiar scratch of his scruff as it brushed against his forehead. Tony grinned into the kiss, being sure to linger and smother Peter in more dramatic kisses along his forehead and cheeks to draw out more giggles, being sure to drag his scruffy chin along the sensitive skin for an added effect. Then, Tony pressed one final kiss on the tip of his nose and pulled back to push away the bangs on his forehead once more. Peter’s giggling died down and he stared up lovingly at his father, and the corner of Tony’s mouth quirked up into a small grin.

Then, Peter reached up a small hand to place on Tony’s cheek, staring up at the man with an innocent admission lying on his tongue.

“You know…” he started softly, yawning tiredly once more, “I always knew you’d come back. I knew you’d come and save me eventually.”

Tony’d hate to admit that he teared up at the confession, but he did. His smile wavered unsurely, blinking rapidly to clear away the wetness. He closed his eyes and sighed softly, reaching his hand up to clasp Peter’s tiny wrist and turn his head to press a loving kiss to the palm of his hand.

“I promise that I’ll always come save you. No matter what it is.”

Peter just grins up at him as his hand drops back beside him. “I know Daddy. I love you.”

Tony’s teary smile was back, and he stood from his seat on the bed. “I love you more Bubba…” he reached over to turn off the lamp light on his bedside table. “Now go to sleep before the boogeyman comes and finds you awake.”

“There’s no boogeyman!” Peter giggled, grinning at the familiarity of the statement.

“Of course there is. Who else do you think scares off all the scary Hammer Bots every night?” Tony grinned, winking at the boy as he shut the bedroom door behind him.

Yeah… he thinks he might like getting used to being a Dad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I made this extra long cuz this is sorta kinda like the last chapter, because ch.12 acts like a mini little epilogue of sorts. So, yeah.
> 
> And I'd just like to say thank you!!! So, so, so much for your support and suggestions from last chapter. Of course, I couldn't use all of them, but I DID love all of you guys' ideas. I sorta wish I could just write 5 different versions of this chapter (I'm not going to do that!). But, I'd like to give a special thanks to [ @aceschwarz222](https://archiveofourown.org/users/aceschwarz222/pseuds/aceschwarz222) for her special suggestion. Ugh! I loved it. Basically, she suggested to base the reunion scene on the reunion scene in Gifted ft. Chris Evans, and goodness I love that movie! As soon as she suggested that I knew that was exactly what I was going to do. So, yeah, thank you my friend for that AMAZING suggestion. This chapter wouldn't have been nearly as good without it :)
> 
> And to all the others who commented THANK YOU again! Even if I didn't use your idea I really, really appreciated it. Goodness... I can't believe it's almost over lol.
> 
> So, yeah. Thank you so much for reading you all.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So guys... this is it. Thanks for sticking with me through this whole thing. I really really love and appreciate ALL of you! I can't express my gratitude enough. Thank you for your support.
> 
> Here's the final chapter. I hope you enjoy :)

“Dad-Dad-Dad-Dad!” Peter shouts excitedly, dashing towards the terrace where JARVIS’ and his Dad’s bots were finishing up taking the Iron Man armor off his father.

“Pete-Pete-Pete-Pete!” Tony countered with a wide grin. He bent his knees for some leverage so he could swing the boy upwards as he barreled into his arms. “How are things looking up here, huh?”

“It works!” Peter shouts joyfully, throwing his arms in the air. Tony settled him comfortably on his hip, bopping the kid on the nose as he made his way into the penthouse with Peter wiggling excitedly in his arms.

“Yep,” Pepper sounded from across the room, gazing intently at the screens illuminated in front of her, “Levels are holding steady… I think.” She bit at her nail in anticipation before glancing to the side to see her favorite two boys approaching. She grinned.

Tony smiled back and dropped Peter back onto his own two feet, because goodness that boy was growing so fast and he didn’t know how much longer he’d be able to lift him up without hurting his back.

“Of course they are,” he grinned, wriggling his brows as he shed his earpieces and made his way towards his dear lady friend, “Pete and I were both directly involved.”

Pepper rolled her eyes at him and Peter laughed excitedly, reaching across the desk his mother was standing at to grasp another handful of m&m’s from the cutesy little bowl next to the screens. Opie jumped to attention from where he had hidden himself behind the screens and swatted playfully at the boy’s hand. Tony sighed in exasperation and grabbed the cat to deposit him on the floor. Peter and Pepper were always spoiling that cat, and all three of them knew Opie wasn’t allowed on desktops after a certain contract/coffee-spilling incident a few months back. Sometimes he felt that his son and girlfriend loved Oppenheimer more than they did him.

“Pete, c’mon,” Pepper chuckled, combing a hand through his damp hair (he had just taken a bath), “you’ve had enough of those.”

“Aww, let the kid live a little Pep. Tonight’s worthy of celebration, isn’t it Pete? Mama’s just bein’ a fun-sucker.”

“Yeah,” Peter chimed cheekily with a mouth full of chocolate as he grinned up at his mother.

“Alright fine,” she nudged Peter’s shoulder gently after sending a glare towards her dear boyfriend, “go get washed up for bed, baby. It’s already past your bedtime.”

“Aww,” Peter whined, screwing his mouth into a pout as he finished chewing on his candies, “do I gotta?”

“Listen to Mama Pete,” Tony smiled, shooting him a wink. He reached out, covering his thumb with his sleeve to wipe away some leftover chocolate that had strayed to the corners of his mouth. “You’re gonna have to get up early to go with her to DC tomorrow. You don’t want to get on her bad side… she might make you sit next to Uncle Happy on the plane. You know how grumpy he gets while travelling.” He whispered the last part in a conspiratorial whisper.

Peter gasped, horrified, and took off for his room without any more protest.

Tony grinned in triumph and spun back to look at Pepper. She rolled her eyes at him and waved away the holographic screens displaying the stats for the arc reactor.

“I’m proud of you,” Tony grinned, reaching his arm out to wrap around her waist.

“What for?” She laughed, raising her brows in amusement.

“For all this,” Tony gestured to the building around them. “Stark Tower is _your_ baby… give yourself some credit, like… 12% of the credit.”

“12%? 12% of my baby?” She balked, jerking away from him to settle him with a friendly glare.

“An argument can be made for 15.” He shrugged innocently, reaching out to grab ahold of her hands, pulling her towards the couch where the champagne glasses lay on the coffee table.

“Hmm,” she hummed in contemplative amusement, accepting the proffered glass of bubbling liquid as she knelt to the ground in front of the short table.

“I’m gonna pay for that remark about percentages in some subtle way later on, aren’t I?” He grinned, taking a sip of his own drink. First and only glass of the night… He hadn’t gotten drunk once since Peter had been back, and he wasn’t planning to do it again. ‘Teach by example’ is what Rhodey had told him, so that’s what he’d been trying extra hard to do… It was a lot harder than he had thought it would be.

“Not gonna be so subtle.”

He barked out a laugh at that, and somewhere in the background he could hear the bathroom sink begin running a steady stream of water for just a moment before shutting off again.

“You better clean those teeth boy!” He shouted playfully down the hall, “I don’t wanna come in there to tuck you in and have stinky breath all in my face.”

“I am!” Peter shouted indignantly, following a brief moment of silence. 

Pepper rolled her eyes at him, and the sound of running water could be heard once more.

“He thinks he’s so sneaky,” Tony chuckled, taking one more sip of his drink.

“Sir, the telephone. I believe my protocols are being overridden,” JARVIS announces overhead. Tony reaches across the table to grab his phone and he lifts it to see Coulson’s contact information displayed across the front. He frowned in annoyance.

Sooner than he would have liked, the elevator doors were open and the man himself stepped out into his living room.

“Security breach,” he announced pointlessly, standing from where he had knelt on the ground beside Pepper. Pepper stood up with him, a pleased smile gracing her lips as she greeted the man.

“Phil,” she smiled. 

“Phil?” He scoffed, “Uh, his first name is Agent.” Tony accused notoriously, nodding his head at the man standing in front of his elevator.

“Come on in. We’re celebrating.” Pepper said, ignoring Tony’s quips as he followed along behind her.

‘Which is why he can’t stay.” Tony muttered under his breath before plastering a wide, fake smile onto his face.

Before Coulson could get another word out, a loud bang sounded from the hallway bathroom followed by a quick succession of pattering feet as they dashed down the hall. Tony sighed in bemusement and Phil cracked a smile as the pajama clad 9-year-old boy barreled into the room with an ear-splitting grin. 

“Uncle Agent!” Peter shouted in greeting, dashing the rest of the way across the room to hug the man. He threw his tiny arms around his waist, and Phil smiled adoringly at the boy as he patted him on the back. 

“Hi, Peter,” he smiled, “what’re you doing up? I thought it would be past your bedtime by now.”

“It is,” Tony jumped in, handing his glass of champagne to Pepper to scoop up his son into his arms, ready to haul him right off to bed because _he’d_ be the one answering to a frustrated Pepper if his kid was being a grump the next morning because _he's_ the one that let him stay up so late. He poked his kid in the side and Peter giggled, batting away his hand.

Then, Peter rolled his eyes, bracing a hand against his Dad’s shoulder as he turned to look back at his Uncle. “Yeah, but I don’t have school tomorrow. I’m going to DC with Mama. So, Daddy said I could stay up to see the arc reactor turn on. It was so cool! You shoulda seen it! First, Dad’s, like, underwater saying it’s gotta work! Then Mama’s pushing the big button, and we had to cross our fingers, ‘cause, like, this is _huge_. And then-and then Dad comes flying back, like PHsewWWW Waaaghh, and he lands like BANG CLISH.” Peter throws himself around his father’s arms as he tries his best to imitate the movement and noises of the Iron Man suit. Even after all these years he was still absolutely fascinated with the idea of his father being a superhero. His all-time favorite superhero, nonetheless.

“I’m sure it was amazing,” Phil smiled at Peter as the boy pressed his small palm up to his mouth to cover the wide yawn that had broke into his animated description of the events that had occurred that night. Tony chuckled at him and bounced him in his arms, adjusting his hold on the boy so he was rested comfortably on his hip. Peter dropped his head to rest on his father’s shoulder with a tired smile, and Phil took that as his moment to continue on with the reason behind his visit.

“We need you to look this over,” he holds out a black, fold up computer towards Tony, and he could see the man physically stiffen at the gesture. Peter perked up at that very moment, vaulting forwards so suddenly, Tony stumbled trying to keep him in his arms. “I’ll get it! I’ll get it.” Phil handed over the large contraption to the small boy and watched as he struggled to maneuver the heavy machine in his tiny hands to pass it on to his father.

Tony rolled his eyes and took it easily from his son’s hands, turning back to address Coulson snarkily. “Official consulting hours are between 8 and 5 every other Thursday-”

“-This isn’t a consultation.”

“Is this about the Avengers?” Pepper questioned curiously, earning a dramatic gasp from Peter. She quickly back tracked, eyes widening when she realized what she had said. “...which I know nothing about.”

Peter isn’t so subtle. He wriggled in his father’s arms and Tony set him on the ground, giving up on any notion of putting the kid to bed at a reasonable hour. “I know about the Avengers!” Peter shouted proudly. He reached up to fist his hand in Tony’s shirt. “Daddy-Daddy-Daddy are you gonna be an Avenger?!”

Tony fixed a look on Coulson, making way towards the desk and computer across the room, Peter following along right with him. “Nope the Avengers Initiative was scrapped, I thought,” he trailed off for a moment. “And I didn’t even qualify?”

“What?!” Peter sounded outraged by the notion. “But your Iron Man!”

Tony smiled at his sons undying support for him. “Yeah? Well, apparently I’m volatile, self-obsessed, don’t play well with others…”

Peter stared up at him, dumbfounded, while Coulson subtly rolled his eyes at the genius’ antics. Pepper smiled slightly, nodding her head in agreement. “That I did know.”

“Uncle Agent!” Peter cried out, releasing his father’s shirt to dash back towards his Uncle. “You gotta let him be an Avenger. He’s the best superhero! You know that… well, you like Captain America, but… he’s still Iron Man!”

Phil grimaced at the child’s obvious outrage. “Well, thankfully this isn’t about personality profiles anymore.” He reached down to settle a hand atop Peter’s head, and Pepper smiled knowingly.

“Whatever,” Tony muttered from across the room. “Potts. A moment?” He waved her over and Peter stood there with his Uncle, looking up at him from under his hand to settle him with what he thought to be a menacing glare.

“Just so you know,” he huffed indignantly, “Iron Man’s _way_ cooler than Captain America.”

Next thing Peter knew, he was being carted off into the elevator with his Mom and Uncle decked out in his favorite Scooby-Doo pajamas because they had to go to DC early. Apparently, Dad had to work, and Mom said if they leave tonight, he could sleep in on the plane and not have to wake up super early. Peter felt that was an okay deal, especially because he got to go in his pajamas! His Mama _never_ let him leave the penthouse in his pajamas. He was just a teeny tiny bit disappointed that he had to leave early though. He wouldn’t get to see his Dad for, like, two whole days! 

His Dad gave him a hug goodbye though, which almost made up for it. Then he made him promise to be good for Mama, and Peter made him promise to take good care of Opie.

“I will,” Tony smiled in amusement. He turned his attention to Pepper. “You’ll call me if he’s not doing good, right? Like, if he has a nightmare or if he gets sick?”

“He’ll be fine Tony,” Pepper sighed, pecking him quickly on the lips. She turned to Peter, wrapping an arm over his shoulders. “We’ve gotten along fine without Daddy before, right?”

“Yep,” Peter smiled, just a tiny bit put off. He reached out once more for his father, and Tony knelt down to wrap him up in one more big hug. “We’ll be fine Daddy. I’ll miss you though.”

“I’ll miss you too Bubba,” Tony smiled, pulling away to look up at the boy’s face. He reached a hand up to clear away some of the bangs that had fallen into his eyes. “You get some sleep on that plane, okay? And you make sure Mama calls me as soon as you land. I wanna make sure you both made it there safe, Capiche?”

Peter nodded his head emphatically, and Tony stood from his crouch. “Welp. I’ve got some homework to do. I’ll see you guys in a a few days. Love you.”

***

“I can’t believe you brought the cat with you.” Coulson muttered as he walked alongside the billionaire. Opie was tucked in his arm, belly up as Tony absentmindedly scratched his stomach.

“Aw,” Tony smiled cheekily, “you know how lonely he gets. I promised my son I’d watch him... and I’m sure Uncle Eye Patch will be absolutely thrilled to see you; don’t you think so Opie?” He directed the last comment to the cat cuddled in his arm, and grinned when he received a contented purr in response. He turned back to look at Phil as they got closer to the door. “Besides, Fury’s got it out for me lately. This is my peace offering, of sorts. Now,” he slapped Coulson on the shoulder with his free hand, “what’s this I heard from Pepper about the cellist?”

“She moved back to Portland.” Coulson answered stiffly, eyeing the other SHIELD agents watching them as they passed by.

“That’s ridiculous, how does she expect you to keep this thing up with your super-secret job? Whatever,” he shrugged, “I’ll help you guys out.” 

“Tony, no.” Coulson interrupted with a quick shake of his head. He knew what ‘help’ meant in Tony Stark’s vocabulary. The man just huffed and rolled his eyes at the agent’s blatant refusal. They approached the doors leading out into the mainframe room and he overheard the conversation, finding the perfect moment to make his dramatic entrance.

“Iridium,” Banner began, “what do they need the Iridium for?”

“It’s a stabilizing agent,” he jumped in quickly. He turned back to Coulson, dropping his voice into a low whisper with the cat still cradled in his arms. “I’m just saying, take a weekend, and I’ll fly you to Portland.”

“Great,” he muttered so softly he could barely here. Tony smirked when he saw, what was that?? Embarrassment? “Thank you.” He gestured quickly to the group standing around the large table, waiting for him to continue with his previous statement.

He ignored them for a moment, turning to address Hill, standing there and looking beyond annoyed with his presence.

“Where’s Fury?” He questioned with a cock of his head, “I brought his friend.” He shrugged his right shoulder, jostling the grey cat purring softly in his arms.

“Busy.” She answered monotonously. Tony raised his brows at her and sighed. He continued into the room, closing in towards the space at the table between Natasha and Thor and quickly deposited the cat onto the table to free his hands. He didn’t miss the confused looks the others shared with each other as they watched him pat the cats head and nudge him towards the center of the table as if it were the most normal thing in the world. He turned his back to them again, and marched towards the center of the room where the control panels that Fury was always messing with, stood.

The three non-science fluent heroes in the room barely listened as he droned on about the science Bruce had been discussing. They settled for watching as the cat stood on all fours at the center of the table, contemplating his next move as he watched Stark’s back. Thor stared at the creature with furrowed brows, not quite sure how to absorb the casual acquaintance Stark possessed with the alien menace.

Steve snapped to attention when Stark called out loudly, pointing to a man across the room.

“That man is playing Gallaga! Thought we wouldn’t notice, but we did.”

The room quieted at the announcement and Steve slowly returned his confused, overwhelmed gaze back to the cat Stark had brought with him, but it was Gone! His head snapped around the room to try and find it, but before he could spot it Stark was speaking again.

“Opie,” he sighed in exasperation. Steve looked over and watched as the notoriously arrogant genius bent at the knees to scoop the cat up from the ground where he had been weaving between his legs. “Dad’s gotta work. Uncle Eye Patch won’t let you keep comin’ around if you always distract me.” Then the genius’ attention seemed to avert once more. He reached a hand up to cover one eye and glanced at the screens surrounding him. “Speaking of… how does Fury even see these?” 

“He turns,” Maria answered dryly.

“Sounds exhausting.” He muttered, readjusting his arm as Opie wiggled around to return to his previous position, belly up, in the crook of the man’s arm. He moved towards one of the screens, tapping at them as he continues with his science talk.

“When did you become an expert in thermonuclear astrophysics?” Maria questioned with a small hint of a smirk.

“Last night,” Tony answered dryly. “Opie can attest to it. He was with me through the entire process.” He nodded down to the chubby cat in his arms.

He continued on with his signature snark, and he could already spot the annoyance hiding behind the great Captain’s face. He approached the large round table once more as Banner started talking. A tiny smile twitched up at the corner of his mouth as he and Banner shot a couple science thoughts off each other.

“Finally,” he sighed, a full-on smirk raging across his face. “Someone who speaks English.”

“Is that what just happened?” The poor old Captain questioned in confusion as Tony stuck his free hand out to shake Banner’s hand.

“It’s good to meet you Dr. Banner. You’re work on anti-electron collisions is unparalleled, and my s-...” he cut himself off in a hurry to correct himself. He wasn’t sure he was quite ready for all these lunatics to know about Peter yet. “Excuse me... _I_ am a huge fan of the way you lose control and turn into an enormous, green rage monster.” Banner looked slightly put off by his admittance. 

Thankfully, Fury chose the perfect moment to stroll into the room.

“Dr. Banner is only here to track the cube. I was hoping you might join him.” He looked at Tony pointedly, and Tony smiled cheekily at the man.

“Ah, Fury. Good to see ya. I brought a friend.” He leaned over to deposit the cat back onto the table, knowing Opie would head straight to the one-eyed man, because he and Fury had some weird, creepy bond-like connection. It was always surreal to see the man with his son’s cat. Heck, as soon as the man found out he had a cat in his home Tony swore he started showing up more often. Going from once every couple months to twice a month.

Fury’s face broke out into a smile as the cat practically ran towards him. He scooped him up into his arms when the animal reached the other end of the table.

“Oppenheimer,” he greeted the cat, massaging the top of the cat’s head with his finger. “It’s so good to see you again. It seems like Stark has been hiding you from me.”

Tony smirked triumphantly, shrugging his shoulders playfully. “Ah, you caught me.”

Fury looked up to shoot the man a glare and caught sight of the gaping mouths and wide eyes around the room. He quickly composed himself, tucking the cat into his arm just as Stark had and cleared his throat. He jumped right back into conversation and the others seemed eager to escape the awkward exchange and continue with their discussion as well.

Tony listened on silently as Captain Rogers made a fool of himself after Fury finished with his monologue. Then he turned his attention to Dr. Banner.

“Shall we play Doctor?” 

“This way.” Banner gestured behind him with a small smile, and Tony moved to follow him. He shot one last look at Fury over his shoulder before he disappeared.

“You got the cat, right Fury? I’m putting you on babysitting duty.”

Fury glared at him, and Tony shot him a wink before disappearing to the labs with his new science friend.

***

Tony was in the hellicarrier lab messing around with Bruce when his phone started to vibrate. He pulled the device from his pocket and smiled when he caught a look at the screen.

“I’ll just be a second,” he said to Banner, politely dismissing himself and standing from his seat. He made his way across the room to talk privately on the phone.

“Hello?” He answered playfully. He couldn’t be sure if it was Pepper or Peter calling.

“Daddy!” A celebratory shout sounded through the receiver. He grinned to himself and tapped at a holographic screen to continue working.

“Hey Bubba,” he spoke in a whisper. He trusted Banner… but he wasn’t sure if the man needed to know about Peter yet. That was a big step in his book. “How’re you and Mama doing? Were the meetings super boring?”

“Yeah,” Peter sighed, “but Mama let me bring a coloring book. Me and Uncle Happy played tic tac toe too. He’s not that good at it. He kept losing.” Peter giggled, and Tony chuckled too.

“Don’t I know it,” he mused, “Uncle Happy’s terrible at all the fun games. He’s such an old man.”

He could feel Banner’s eyes boring into his back, but he ignored it, making note to lower his voice further.

“But he’s younger than you Daddy!” Peter accused with another bark of laughter.

“Are you calling me old, young man?” Tony gasped quietly in faux offense.

“Yes!” Peter squealed.

“That’s it,” Tony growled playfully, “no Star Wars for you this week. We get to watch _my_ favorite movie instead.

“Nooo,” Peter whined, “you’re not old! I take it back.”

“That’s what I thought,” Tony muttered triumphantly, glancing over his shoulder momentarily to catch Bruce’s gaze before the man averted it elsewhere in an attempt to appear like he wasn’t totally listening in on the conversation.

“Mama said I need to tell you that we’re coming home soon. So, I’ll get to see you soon. Is Opie okay?”

“Yes, Opie is fine. I brought him with me to see Uncle Eye Patch. He’s being well taken care of. And tell Mama to keep an eye on the news. Make sure to tell your Uncle Happy to keep watch on, um… keep a watch on New York’s current events, kay?”

“Whaddya mean?” Peter questioned in confusion.

“Nothing you need to worry your little head about Cubby. Just be safe, okay? And don’t you worry about me or Opie.”

“Kay, bye Daddy!” Peter exclaimed. “Love you lots.”

Tony hesitated with Bruce in the room, but his son deserved to hear it. He always deserved to hear it. “Love you too Buddy.” And he planned on having Dr. Banner visit the Tower anyway. It was only a matter of time before he became Uncle Bruce. So, no harm done he supposed.

***

“Big man in a suit of armor,” Rogers drawled threateningly. “Take that off an what are you?”

“Genius, Billionaire, Playboy, Philanthropist,” Tony answered easily, suppressing his frustration to maintain his practiced, calm, unflappable facade.

“I know men with none of that worth 10 of you,” Rogers muttered, leaning closer towards him so they’re faces were barely a foot apart. “I’ve seen the footage.” Tony grit his teeth in irritation, because now wasn’t a time to lash out in anger. There was a crisis, and the last thing they needed is a petty ‘who’s bigger’ argument distracting them from the real problem. 

But Rogers just had to take it _too far_.

“I’ve read all about the little PR stunts you’ve pulled. The people of New York may be tricked into thinking you're a hero, but it’s easy to see through it. You’re no hero,” he spit out with narrowed eyes, “a hero doesn’t foster a kid and parade him around in front of cameras, claiming to care for him just for good publicity, before dropping him at your earliest convenience. You don’t care about anyone but yourself. You only fight for what’s good for you and your precious company. You don’t care who gets caught in the crossfires. Not even innocent little kids.”

Tony’s eye twitched dangerously. The public didn’t know about Peter… he had made sure of that. He _knew_ what it had to look like to those on the outside of his personal social group, but that didn’t make the empty accusation any easier to take. He locked eyes with the man attempting to stand over him dominantly. His lips curled in a menacing scowl, and he caught sight of the way Fury’s eyebrows furrowed worriedly. That man was one of the few people that new the truth about Peter. It was too hard to try and hide it from him with all his random, unannounced visits to his personal home after he found out about Opie. Thankfully, the man was nothing but supportive with his effort to hide the truth about Peter from the world, and now he was more than grateful to have the man in the room with him. At least one person knew the truth.

Rogers continued, taking note of Stark’s unsavory attitude, and building off it to drive his point home. “You’re not the guy to make the sacrifice play. To lay down on a wire and let the other guy to crawl over you-”

“-I think I’d just cut the wire,” Tony answered coolly, swallowing thickly to keep himself from lashing out. He’d end up letting something slip in his fit of anger, and there was no way he wanted this ‘high and mighty’ Rogers knowing _anything_ about his son.

Rogers just smirked at him in amusement, and that only seemed to peeve Tony off more, but he stood his ground. 

“Always a way out,” he muttered with a condescending grin, “that’s how you do it. You have no care for how it’ll affect those around you…. You may not be a threat, but you better stop pretending to be a hero.”

Things only continued to get more heated from there as the others listened idly from the sidelines.

“You people are so petty,” Thor laughed at them, “and tiny…”

Fury turned his attention to Banner, and it was obvious to see that the tension that had permeated in the room was getting to the man. Rogers and Tony disregarded their earlier argument to turn towards Bruce as the man started his tense, depressing monologue. Tony eyed Banner's hand worriedly as he picked up the scepter unknowingly from the stand, then he glanced towards Fury with Opie cradled comfortably in his arms. He couldn’t help but panic… Pepper would kill him if he let anything happen to that cat. And Peter would never forgive him, that was for certain… heck, he’d never forgive himself. That cat did more good for his son than he had done the first year he’d had Peter.

“Banner,” Rogers spoke calmly, as Tony inched his way towards Fury, “put down the scepter.”

But before Tony had a chance to retrieve his cat from Fury and flee from the dangers threatening to break out in the room, alerts sounded from the computers they were using to locate the Tesseract. Banner rushed to check the screen. Tony made a move to leave the room and retrieve his suit, but Steve grabbed a hold of his arm tightly.

“You aren’t going alone.” He instructed.

Tony had had enough of this guy’s crap. He’d insulted him, his undying love for his son, and everything he did to make sure that the thing he loved most in the world was safe and happy. He slapped the Captain’s hand away.  
“You’re gonna stop me?”

“Put on the suit and let’s find out.” Rogers threatened, stepping closer to him in a threatening manner. 

Fury’s attention was drawn to them and the worried crease in his brows appeared again.

“I’m not afraid to hit an old man,” Tony muttered, hand twitching eagerly.

“Put on the suit.” Rogers grit out menacingly.

Next thing they knew, Fury’s eyes had widened on instinct and he turned his back to the center of the room, hunching over Opie protectively as an explosion rippled through the hellicarrier, sending everyone flying.

Tony landed on his back, breathless, next to Rogers. He shook his head to clear his thoughts and Rogers grabbed for him, helping him from the ground.

“Put on the suit.” It wasn’t a threat anymore.

“Yep,” Tony muttered, scrambling from the floor, and rushing from the room. He tucked an earpiece into his ear as he and Rogers jogged down the halls. “Fury, if my cat’s hurt, I’m gonna kill you.”

“He’s fine, Stark,” Fury growled out, “now go!”

***

“Mama?” Peter questioned worriedly, staring at the news playing out on the TV screen. They were on their way back to New York, and his Mom and Uncle had been watching the news the whole time just like his Dad told them to do. “Why’s Daddy going up to the big, black hole? He’s gonna get hurt!”

“It’s okay, Petey,” Pepper swallowed. Eyes never leaving the screen as she reaches out to pull Peter close to her.

“No!” Peter screamed as he watched his Dad approach the huge, scary hole in the sky. “No! What’s he doing?! He’s gonna get so hurt! He can’t do that!”

He could hear the quiver in his mother’s voice. His Mom never cried… something was very, very wrong.

“Oh my god,” she muttered under her breath as the Iron Man suit disappeared into the dark vortex swirling above Stark Tower.

“No-no-no-no-no,” Peter sobbed, pulling away from his mother, rushing to stand directly in front of the TV screen. He braced his hands against the glass and stared at the footage intently, willing his father to appear again. “Daddy!” He cried.

No matter how much he cried, his Dad still wasn’t coming back through the hole. 

Then, seconds later, the monsters started to fall, and his eyes widened. His Dad did that! He saved the day! That had to be why he went into the alien hole! He had to go and be Iron Man. 

Peter's celebration was short lived though, because then the massive hole started to shrink. His eyes widened in panic, and he glanced over his shoulder to share a look with his mother. 

The suit still hadn’t come back, and the hole was getting smaller and smaller. His body started shaking and the large tears trailed down his cheeks as his cries returned. “No-No! Daddy! C’mon! No! You can’t leave too! Please!” He banged his palms against the screen in protest, and his Uncle had to pull him away, wrapping his large arms around his figure before he could break anything. 

“NO!” Peter fought against the grip, but Happy just held him tighter. He turned him away from the screen, because no child deserved to watch their father die, and pulled the small boy's face against his chest. Peter sobbed into him, and Happy’s eyes, along with Pepper’s were fixated intently on the screen, hoping that Tony would miraculously appear at the last minute.

***

The day had been a long one. His penthouse was in shambles thanks to Loki’s less than pleasant encounter with the Hulk. And Pepper’s favorite vase had been shattered. Boy, was he going to pay when she made it back home. 

He had checked in with Fury to make sure his son’s cat was safe, and the man promised to drop him off at the Tower at his earliest convenience. Soon after, SHIELD agents were gathered on his floor, busy arresting Loki, while he locked up the Tesseract into a high-end briefcase.

The group of heroes made their rounds, did what they needed to do, and afterwards they headed out for Shawarma because they were all starving. Which was absolutely delicious, by the way. 

Then, it was nearly 8 at night and they were all crowding through the main entrance of Stark Tower. He hated to admit it, but he had completely forgotten to call Pepper and Peter to check in after Happy had texted him to confirm that they were alright. There was too much going on to tell directly to them despite how much he wanted to. Last he checked, they were still safe in the air, circling a few miles away from New York, but that was hours ago. 

So, when he and his new team made it back to the Tower, he supposed he deserved the angry call he received while waiting for the elevator in the lobby. He answered it in a panic when he saw it was Pepper.

“Pepper!” He answered quickly, stepping into the elevator, followed by the rest of his teammates. “Are you okay?”

“AM I OKAY?!” She shrieked into the receiver. He had to pull the phone away from his ear and winced. The others glanced at him in apologetic amusement. “AM I _OKAY_?!

“Hon,” he coaxed gently, hoping to calm the panicky woman down. “It’s okay. Calm down.”

“TONY!” Pepper shouted in a panic, “PETER IS HAVING A MELTDOWN. YOU DIDN’T EVEN HAVE THE DECENCY TO CALL?!” Tony furrowed his brows in worry.

“Is he okay?”

“No!” Pepper shouts. “He’s convinced you’re dead! I promised that you’d be there when we made it back, but you WEREN’T HERE! The place is a mess and he’s-he’s-Tony, please. He needs you.”

“I-I-I’m literally in the elevator. Tell him it's all okay. There's no need to worry. Daddy’s on his way.” The words spilled from his mouth in a panic, not bothering with a filter, because he didn’t care anymore. His son was freaking out, having a meltdown, completely worried about him, and he hadn’t even had the decency to call and let him know he was alright. What kind of horrible father was he?

“Daddy?” Barton questioned emphatically with a raise of his brows. Tony shot him a menacing look and ignored the shared glances his new friends were sharing around him.

It felt like an hour, but it was only a second more before the elevator doors were opening again to his penthouse floor. The heartbreaking wails reached his ears immediately and he hurried out of the elevator in search of his son. He found him curled up beside a teary-eyed Pepper on his couch. Her phone was still pressed up against her ear.

“No-no-no-no!” Peter sobbed quietly into her side. 

Pepper’s head whipped around to stare at him when she made out the sound of his hurried footsteps over Peter’s loud wails.

“Baby, don’t cry,” Tony cooed softly, rounding the couch quickly to kneel in front of his son.

“Daddy?” Peter questioned happily, voice thick with tears, eyes blotchy as he gazed at his father with pure relief and job. “Daddy!” Peter leapt into his waiting arms, clinging tightly to him as he sobbed into his neck. 

Tony wrapped his arms around his son and stood, humming softly, and whispering reassuring nothings into his son’s ear as he swayed back and forth. Peter clung to him, and Tony clung back. He reached out the arm not cradling his son to Pepper, and she didn’t hesitate to join in the hug. She cried into his other shoulder and he pressed a loving kiss to the side of her head before doing the same for Peter.

“It’s okay, Bubba. Daddy’s alright, I promise. I’m not going anywhere.” He sighed, blinking slowly, and turning his gaze to the side to glance at the group gathered awkwardly in front of his personal elevator. He supposed the scene was a bit… _odd_ , considering what they had assumed of his character. 

He chuckled in amusement at the Captain’s wide eyes, and he wiggled the shoulder Peter had nuzzled into.

“Hey, Petey. I have a few friends that might want to meet you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, there it was. I hope it was everything you were hoping for... I'm sorry that it took so long, I wasn't for sure how I wanted to end it. But, yeah, I can't believe it's finished... Wow.
> 
> Anyways. The original plan after I finished this fic was to start back up on my Uncle Tony fics and focus on the Irondad Bingo... but I got distracted by an idea again-ugh! I love it so so so so so much! But I hate the idea of having to commit to another wip/multichap fic... I wanna do it SOOOO bad tho! Like you have no idea... I've been craving a good Irondad Mafia AU for forever, so I decided to just do my own. I'm so excited! I have it all planned it its gonna be great!  
> It's gonna feature alpha dad tony stark and his three precious children, because Endgame ruined me and I just want the ironfam to be together forever. But, yeah, I've got this whole idea. And if you guys have any suggestions for what to do with it or tiny details that would be cool to include LET ME KNOW! Because I literally have close to NO idea what I'm doing with this type of intense writing (I do lots of fluff... obviously. but ill still do lots of fluff in this one because, like, bamf but soft Tony Stark is uber hot). I cant promise i'll do them for sure because I have the main blocks and plots lined out, but id still like to hear your thoughts! So, yeah. We'll see how it goes :)


End file.
